


spellbound

by iwritetrash



Series: spellbound [1]
Category: Victoria (TV)
Genre: Alfred is a Dumbass, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Angst, Break Up, Camping, Domestic, Dramatic Backstory, Edward Drummond Lives, Emotional Infidelity, Eventual Happy Ending, Friends to Lovers, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Magical Tattoos, Miscommunication, Multi, Mutual Pining, Palm-reading, Potions, Runes, Samhain, Witches, but they are all witches, not centred around witches, this is the witch au that nobody asked for
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-24
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2019-05-28 01:02:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 37,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15037241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwritetrash/pseuds/iwritetrash
Summary: Florence is a pretty regular visitor to Alfred and Mina's shop, where they sell potions and palm readings, which absolutely doesnothave anything to do with her enormous crush on Mina. When she brings along her roommate, Edward, and introduces him to Alfred, the two are smitten immediately, which leads to broken hearts and magical mishaps several times over.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> so i've had this au on my mind for a while now, and i've actually got it all planned out into 11 chapters and an epilogue (though that is subject to change...), so let me know if you like this idea and i'll carry on with it! 
> 
> also if you read that awful summary and still felt like reading this fic then thanks i appreciate your faith in me, hopefully you still like this.
> 
> the plot isn't centred around being a witch or anything, but they are all witches and it's like a part of their lives and it does come into play from time to time etc. if there's any aspect of the fic that confuses you (or if i've got some of it wrong) then please do let me know!
> 
> other than that, enjoy!

Florence likes to stop by Mina and Alfred’s little shop on a fairly regular basis. She tells herself that it’s for Mina’s insanely good tonic for period cramps, and the cute vintage-apothecary style décor, both of which are contributing factors, of course, but, if she’s being totally honest, there is the small factor that is Florence’s absolutely enormous crush on Mina.

See, Mina is the kind of beautiful that Florence just can’t say no to, with big blue eyes and a smile like the sun, and golden hair swept away from her face, and a shop that looks like it belongs in the 1800s, not the present day. Her familiar is a large, iridescent butterfly that flutters around the shop, landing on bundles of herbs hanging on racks along the walls, and on tonics bottled in vials that look like they belong in a Shakespeare play shelved in a large case behind the counter, where Mina sits, taking inventory and noting down orders, until the bell above the door chimes to announce a customer’s arrival.

Something about the way a few pieces of hair fall loose from the bun Mina usually pulls it back into, and the light floral dresses she usually wears has Florence head over heels in love from the very first moment she set foot in the shop. So, Florence stops by pretty often, buying tonics by the case, just so she can spend a little time with Mina before she has to head back to her own shop, a small bakery/café just down the road.

When Mina suggests she get a palm reading from Alfred, her roommate who runs a fortune telling service in the back room of the shop, Florence is in absolutely no position to say no. God, she’s in deep.

Florence isn’t too bad at prophecies and fortune telling herself, in fact it’s probably her main area of skill, other than keeping her pastries fresh and her coffee warm, but those big blue eyes and that sincere smile have her nodding along, until she’s being escorted into a darkly lit room with a faint blue glow coming from the neon sign at the entryway, and the crystal ball in the centre of the table.

The crystal ball is definitely there for the benefit of the humans, Florence muses. Any self-respecting witch knows that a crystal ball is utterly useless when it comes to fortune telling, but for some reason humans have gotten it into their heads that it’s impossible to have a proper fortune-telling without one.

“Al, I’ve got a customer for you. This one’s on me, ‘kay?” Mina calls as she ushers Florence into the room.

“You owe me one, Mina,” Alfred says, from where he’s sitting at the table shuffling a deck of tarot cards. 

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Mina says as she leads Florence to the chair opposite Alfred. “I’ll leave you two to it, be nice, Al,” Mina instructs, before leaving the room, closing the door behind her.

Florence feels a little awkward at first, she’ll admit to that. She’s never really had someone else read her palm or anything like that, because she’s always done it for herself, and, having heard Mina’s stories about some of Alfred’s failed magical attempts, she’s more than a little sceptical. He proves her wrong almost immediately.

This guy is good, better than her even. Florence likes to think she knows her own palm pretty well, but Alfred picks up on the finer details, the small markings on her love line that suggest she’s in love with someone at the moment, the almost invisible break in her life line signifying her leaving the coven she grew up in. He doesn’t just look into her future, but into her past too, and he’s right about every single detail. 

He predicts a lasting, stable relationship in her future and her heart skips a beat when he mentions that she has already met the person she will marry. She doesn’t miss the small grin that passes his face when he says that.

When Alfred has finished reading her palm, he offers her a tarot reading as well, since it’s on the house, but she politely declines. She’s not quite sure what else might be revealed if she agreed, and she’s really not sure she wants to know. 

Her familiar, a long, but very slim, green snake, shifts a little from where he’s wrapped around her forearm, and slips down towards her hand as though to reassure her as she waves goodbye to Alfred and heads back out into the shop, where Mina is just finishing up with a customer.

Florence hovers near the counter until the customer leaves, still feeling a little spooked by Alfred’s profound ability to read her palm like he was reading a book, until Mina turns that brilliant smile on her again.

“He’s good, right? I hope he didn’t freak you out or anything, he can get a little intense when he gets invested in someone’s story, you know?” 

“I hope he doesn’t scare off too many of his customers.”

“Nah, he’s usually okay, plus I’d rather he was reading fortunes than doing spells back there. Did I tell you about the time he tried to hex his douchebag ex and turned _himself_ into a frog instead? It took me four days to figure out how to turn him back,” Mina rolls her eyes, “that boy is a safety hazard.” 

Florence smiles, thinking of her roommate, Edward, who doesn’t use magic much because the last time he tried to make a potion he almost set the kitchen on fire. “Is Alfred seeing anyone at the moment?” Florence asks, without really thinking about it. Is she seeing things or did Mina’s face just drop a little?

“Uh, no, he tends to scare people off by grabbing their palms and digging into their past on a first date. He is gay, though.” Mina tries to laugh at her own joke, but it falls a little flat.

“Oh!” Florence realises with a start what Mina must think. “I wasn’t asking for me! No, I’m a lesbian, gay through and through,” she chuckles awkwardly. What is it about Mina that makes her so nervous all the time? “I was asking for my roommate. He hasn’t really dated anyone since him and I went out, back when we both thought we were straight, and it’s high time he got back in the game.”

Mina’s face lights up immediately. “I’ve been trying to find Alfred a boyfriend for _years_ ,” she beams.

“Maybe I can bring Edward by sometime and convince him to get a palm reading?”

“That would be wonderful! You really do have all the answers, Flo,” Mina says, reaching over and touching Florence’s hand, making her heart skip a beat from some combination of the nickname and the peculiar intimacy of the action. She can feel herself turning some ridiculous shade of scarlet.

“Well, I guess I ought to get back to the bakery before the lunch rush,” she stammers, “I left Edward in charge while I was gone but I’m not sure I trust him to be alone any longer than he already has been.”

Florence steps backwards and just narrowly misses knocking over a display advertising Mina’s tonic for nerves – _how ironic_ , Florence thinks – before stumbling out of the shop with one last sheepish smile over her shoulder at Mina.

 

* * *

 

When she makes it back to her bakery, Florence is pleasantly surprised to find that Edward hasn’t managed to burn anything down, though that might be due to the fact that there are only three people sitting in the café, and he seems to have only sold two loaves of bread in her absence. 

Florence’s bakery is her pride and joy, just a few buildings down from Mina and Alfred’s shop. What started out as just a small bread shop quickly blossomed into a café where the coffee is always hot, and the iced drinks never get warm, and pastries always have that fresh-out-of-the-oven feeling, which serves both humans and non-humans alike.

She also has a knack for knowing what her customers will like, even if they don’t quite know it yet themselves. Recommendations are her specialty, and it’s rare that a customer turns her down when she points out a pastry or a drink that she just _knows_ they will love.

Sadly, Edward doesn’t have quite the same skillset as her, in fact he’s a political columnist, not a baker, and he prefers not to mix magic with business, but he’s happy to run the bakery while Florence runs errands, since he spends half of his life there anyway. He likes to work on his articles sat at the counter with a slice of Florence’s orange and poppy-seed loaf and a cappuccino that never gets cold.

He also likes to tease Florence about her crush on Mina, which begins the moment she walks back through the door, with her face still redder than a tomato.

“I’m guessing from the look on your face that you haven’t asked her out yet?” Edward grins as he undoes his apron and tosses it in her direction.

Florence doesn’t gratify his smugness with an answer, settling for a withering glare instead that has him scuttling out from behind the counter at high speed. Last time he teased her he ended up with coffee that tasted bitter and watery, no matter how much milk and sugar he added, for an entire week, and every slice of cake he had from her was stale, even if it had only just come out of the oven. He wasn’t keen to repeat the experience.

“I had a palm reading today. Mina’s roommate Alfred does them in the back room,” Florence says, hoping she sounds nonchalant. If Edward has any idea that she’s trying to set him up with Alfred then he’ll point-blank refuse to ever meet him, so subtlety is key. “You should come with me next time and get your own done, he’s pretty good at it.”

“Why would I pay some random guy to read my palm when you can do a pretty decent job of it for free?”

Florence rolls her eyes. “He’s better at it than me, you big idiot, you know I’m better with prophecies than palm reading and tarot cards.”

“Are you sure you don’t just want someone to stop you embarrassing yourself in front of your crush?” Edward teases, prodding at her across the counter until she scowls at him. 

“Just get a palm reading, asshole, maybe he’ll tell you why you’re such a jerk,” Florence says, before telling him to piss off back to his usual seat while she serves actual paying customers. 

 

* * *

 

Florence manages to drag Edward along to Mina and Alfred’s shop the following week, claiming she needs to ask Mina a question about one of her tonics, or some equally lame excuse. Edward is directed down a corridor to Alfred’s room by an already-distracted Mina who’s too busy staring at Florence to really show him the way. She’s leaning on the counter with a dopey grin while Florence blushes and stumbles over her words. Edward wonders how on earth either of them are so oblivious when they’re both so obviously lovesick.

The room he’s directed to is lit with same neon light Florence had described, but the light is a soft purple that colours the room with shades of lilac, unlike the cool blue Florence mentioned. The man sat at the table in the middle in the room, Alfred, presumably, is oddly striking in some almost inhuman way, his light hair having taken on a purple tinge from the light, and his eyes framed by thick lashes which cast long shadows over sculpted cheekbones. Edward can’t work out if it’s a trick of the light or if he’s really just that gorgeous.

Alfred seems deep in thought, eyes drifting over three tarot cards laid out in front of him. Edward doesn’t know enough about fortune telling to make any kind of guess as to what Alfred sees in the cards, but he looks somewhat confused by whatever it is that he sees.

After hovering for a moment in the doorway, watching Alfred as though drawn to him, Edward coughs somewhat awkwardly to get his attention. He looks up instantly, startled by Edward’s arrival.

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t realise anyone was here,” he says, quickly pushing the cards back into the pile and moving them out of the way, “what can I do for you today?” Alfred flashes Edward a winning smile that has his knees feeling a little weak. How is it possible to be so attracted to someone this quickly?

“My, uh, my friend Florence told me you’re good at palm readings?” God, that sounds stupid, doesn’t it? Edward mentally slaps himself, but Alfred isn’t fazed. 

“I like to think I’m okay.” There’s that smile again. Edward isn’t sure he’ll be able to cross the three feet from the door to the chair without falling at this rate. “Grab a seat, let’s see what we can find.”

Edward avoids looking at Alfred’s face as he walks to the chair, focusing on putting one foot in front of the other, weak at the knees as he is. Before he’s even settled in his seat, Alfred is reaching for his hand, and when their skin touches Edward swears he can feel sparks jumping between them. At the edge of his vision, a large maine coon tilts its head in interest and hops off the chair where it’s sat to wander over to the table. 

“Don’t mind Charlie, she likes to investigate sometimes,” Alfred says, as the large cat, whose fur matches Alfred’s hair, sniffs at Edward’s leg, though his attention seems rather more focused on Edward’s palm than anything else. His own familiar, a small chameleon named Dottie, creeps out of his sleeve just slightly as though in greeting.

Before Edward can reply, Alfred is already talking through his palm. His predictions are detailed, drawing on the past to inform the present and future. There’s something so intimate about the way Alfred is cradling his hand, tracing each line and crease on his palm with such intensity. It almost feels as though Edward has handed him the key to his own soul. 

“Not much of a love life so far, but some rough seas ahead for you,” Alfred comments, his eyes flickering up briefly to meet Edward’s before darting back down. There’s something about that startling bright blue that makes Edward want to get closer. “Your life has been pretty constant so far, but you’re facing a pretty significant period of upheaval, lots of changes up ahead.”

“That’s always reassuring,” Edward mutters. Why does he get the feeling that this palm reading might be the beginning of it all? 

“It’s not clear whether there’s a happily ever after waiting at the end of it all, there’s still so many paths and choices before you get to that point,” Alfred says, this time without looking up. 

Alfred is quiet for a little while, before looking up at Edward with a small smile, eyes a little hazy again, like he’s awakening from a deep trance. “That’s all I can get from you, I can’t really see that far ahead because of all the uncertainty you’re facing.”

“You’ve already told me more than anyone else has been able to get,” Edward returns Alfred’s smile. He can feel his heart pounding, his skin tingling where Alfred’s hand is still holding his. He pulls his hand away a little too hastily, reaching for his wallet. “How much do I owe you?”

Alfred waves his hands dismissively. “It’s on the house, I barely even got a full reading out of you anyway.” Edward is blushing a little, suddenly grateful for the dim light. “Hello, gorgeous,” Alfred croons, and it takes Edward a second to realise he’s talking to Dottie, who is making her merry way across the table in Alfred’s direction, and not to him.

“Ah, sorry, she likes to go for a wander from time to time.” Edward is definitely blushing now, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand.

“She’s lovely,” Alfred grins at him, “do you mind if I-?” he’s reaching towards her, hesitating for just a moment before he picks her up.

“Oh, no, go ahead,” Edward nods. As Alfred lifts her, her colour changes from a subtle green to a more vibrant shade, which quickly morphs into a bright blue. Alfred looks impressed, grinning as she shifts colours, until she settles on a bright pattern with as many colours as she can manage. “She’s showing off now, she must like you.”

“Charlie definitely likes you as well, she’s practically begging for you to stroke her.” Alfred nods in the direction of his familiar, who’s currently rubbing herself against Edward’s ankles. Edward reaches down to stroke her, feeling almost guilty given how perfectly groomed she seems to be, much like her human counterpart. She begins purring almost instantly, and Edward feels his heart melt a little; he’s always been a cat person, but he has a feeling that this cat’s owner has a pretty significant influence as well. 

He looks back up at Alfred, who’s letting Dottie climb up his arm with a dorky grin. Fuck, he’s in deep.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> let me know what you thought! i'm already working on the next chapter, so it shouldn't be too long of a wait for that one!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter 2 has arrived!! 
> 
> before this chapter, i just want to give a _huge_ shout out to [luckymoony](http://luckymoony.tumblr.com) who made [this gorgeous fanart](http://luckymoony.tumblr.com/post/175268581649/heres-a-fanart-i-did-for) of mina and her familiar in the shop! ❤️
> 
> i hope you like this chapter, i did add a whole extra scene right before i posted this because i was worried that i was _telling_ and not _showing_ (that's what all those writing advice posts say, right?) and not giving you guys any depth to the relationship so uh... i hope there's more depth?
> 
> anyway, enjoy!!

Alfred thinks he might have met his soulmate.

He’s never really believed in love at first sight. In fact, if he’s being honest, he’d always thought that was a load of shit. Meeting one Edward Drummond, however, has him questioning his whole belief system. Not only is he drop dead gorgeous, with his curly brown hair and his stripy t-shirt and his denim jacket, but his palm had revealed all kinds of wonderful things; Edward has a kind heart, and he’s funny, and charming, and adorably dorky, and just about everything Alfred could possibly want in a man.

Oh, and Charlie has taken an immediate liking to him, which is somewhat rare in his experience. He’s ruled out several perfectly good past boyfriends on that basis, so if Edward is already meeting that standard then Alfred feels pretty secure in Edward’s status as a decent guy. Charlie definitely has better taste in men than him, so he trusts her judgement more than his own in most cases.

Edward starts coming in more often after that first palm reading. He comes at least every few weeks or so for another reading, and sometimes he’ll get a tarot reading too, but more often than not they end up chatting long after Alfred has finished giving Edward the exact same reading as the last ten times he came in. 

He also starts dropping by whenever Florence makes an excuse to visit Wilhelmina and flirt some more, slipping round to the back room if Alfred isn’t with a customer and lounging on the sofa in the corner with him to complain about how oblivious their respective roommates are.

Alfred tries not to spend those lovely hours with Edward just staring at him, but it becomes rather difficult when considering how unfathomably gorgeous he is. Something about those strategically messy curls makes Alfred want to drag his hands through them, and god forbid Alfred think too much about Edward’s mouth, which is practically sinful in his opinion. It’s like Edward is consciously trying to seduce him, which Alfred would love to believe if only their fortunes actually matched up. 

And they don’t. Not even slightly.

So that’s that. Alfred is destined to be smitten for all eternity, and Edward will be too busy managing his own hopeless pining for some other man to notice it.

 

* * *

 

“Why’d you choose fortune telling?” Edward asks one evening. Alfred has long since closed up shop, and yet Edward is still lounging on the sofa in his back room with Charlie tucked into his side and Dottie perched on his shoulder. Alfred is sat at the opposite end of the sofa, eyes studying Edward, whose face is only dimly lit by the neon light, which is a soft pink today.

“I don’t know, I guess it was the only thing I could do without causing a disaster. When I was a kid my parents wanted me to get into glamours and spells and hexes, but when I turned my brother into a beetle for the fifth time I think they gave up hope.” 

Edward laughs. “What were you trying to do?”

“Levitate him.”

“Oh wow,” Edward laughs again, and this time it’s a full, belly-clutching, sofa-shaking laugh, and Alfred thinks maybe he could watch Edward laugh like that forever.

“Shut up.” Alfred grabs a cushion and hitting Edward over the head with it, careful not to hit Dottie as he does so, and utterly unable to stop smiling even as he tries to reprimand Edward. “I happen to think George rather enjoyed his time as a beetle.”

Edward makes a conscious effort to compose himself, forcing himself to hold back a smile. “Oh, I’m sure he did.” He barely manages to maintain his composure for a few seconds before he’s laughing again.

“Stop it!” Alfred hits him again with the cushion. “Maybe I should turn you into a beetle, too.”

“Are you sure you wouldn’t just end up doing it to yourself?”

Alfred cringes. “Mina told you about that?”

“Mina tells _everyone_ about that. It’s the best story I’ve ever heard.” 

“In my defence, he deserved to be turned into a frog. I just… should have asked someone else to do it for me.”

Edward raises his eyebrows. “You think? But in all seriousness, if there’s anyone else you want turned into a frog, or a beetle, or whatever-“ he gestures to himself “-I’m your guy.”

It’s Alfred’s turn to laugh until his stomach hurts. When he finally manages to catch his breath, he turns to Edward with a soft smile. “I’ll remember that.” Edward’s face is unreadable – or maybe Alfred just doesn’t dare look close enough to see what’s really underneath.

Something about the mood in the room shifts just slightly, and maybe it’s the way the pink light is casting shadows across his face, or the sudden silence, but Alfred is hyperaware of every single place where Edward’s body is touching his. It’s like his skin is burning, and his heart is aching, and all he wants to do is lean forward and kiss Edward senseless.

And then Edward’s phone rings. It’s Florence. She wants to know if he’ll be home soon or if she should eat dinner without him. Edward says he’ll be back in 5, and offers Alfred an apologetic smile before he leaves.

Alfred’s heartache only intensifies with Edward’s absence. “I guess it’s just you and me, huh, Charlie?” Alfred mutters sitting up to stroke his familiar, but even she is still watching the door Edward left through.

 

* * *

 

Mina almost laughs in his face when he describes his woes to her.

“Mina, this isn’t funny, I never laugh when you talk about Florence for hours on end,” Alfred grumbles. Mina composes herself with a sigh, his head settled in her lap as he lounges across their sofa, the picture of agonised despair. She can’t be the one to solve the mystery for him, she knows. This is one he must figure out for himself.

“I’m sorry, I know you’re utterly heartbroken over him, but have you ever thought about just asking him out?”

“Why _on earth_ would I do that?”

Mina bites back a laugh. “Maybe because you’re so desperate to date him? He might even say yes if you ask him nicely.” 

“I already told you, I read his palm. He’s in love with someone else,” Alfred says with a sigh. “And besides, we’ve got such a good friendship going. I can’t jeopardise that over some childish infatuation.”

“Oh, Alfred, honey, you are way past childish infatuation,” Mina teases, prodding his cheek and earning a scowl from him. “Please tell me you don’t honestly think he needs his fortune reading as often as he says?”

Alfred pauses for a moment, deep in thought, and for a moment it almost looks like he believes her. “Oh, and you honestly believe Florence needs a new bottle of your tonic for period cramps every single week?” he retaliates.

Mina sighs again, combing a hand through Alfred’s hair. “Florence and I… It’s complicated, you know that, Al, but this thing with Edward doesn’t have to be.”

“But it already is,” Alfred says, sitting up and moving to sit at the opposite end of the sofa. “You know, I’ve been hurt before by guys who I thought were nice who turned out to be assholes, and guys who I thought were gay who turned out to be straight, and I’m sick of it, Mina. If I asked Edward out and he said no…" 

“You don’t know that he will-“

“But he might!” Alfred cuts her off with a yell. He can see from the look on her face that he’s upset her, so he shuffles up the sofa towards her again, resting his head on her shoulder. “He might,” he repeats, a little quieter this time. “Edward and I have a good thing going, and I can’t lose that. I can’t–“ his  words are lost in a sob which shakes his entire body, tears welling in his eyes.

Surely it’s too soon to feel like this, too soon to feel so strongly, but then Alfred has always been a sucker when it comes to love, whether he believed in love at first sight or not.

Mina wraps her arms around him as he cries, remembering nights when he had done the same for her as she cried over douchebag ex-boyfriends and unrequited love. She had never cried over Florence, though. Not yet, anyway. Things had always seemed so sure for them, like they were building up to something wonderful, and all they needed to do was put in the time. It had never felt like this; the way Alfred was feeling. It had never felt like a sacrifice, or a battle, or a heartbreak, merely like a promise.

Mina’s soothing words do little to calm the storm raging in Alfred’s heart, so she slips a few drops of a tonic for restful thoughts into his tea, and brings it to him with a smile. Tea is the best of all remedies, she says. _But it’s even better with a touch of magic_. The potion is not long-lasting, but it will be enough to grant him a peaceful night’s sleep.

 

* * *

 

“He’s heartbroken, the poor boy,” Mina whispers to Harriet, who’s popped in to collect a fresh bottle of Mina’s tonic for colds.

“Is there anything that any of us can do to help?” Their coven is very tightly knit, more of a family than a self-contained class system. Even their leader and high priestess, Victoria, doesn’t hold onto any airs of superiority over them unless they’re managing a crisis.

“I’m not really sure there’s anything we can do, short of slipping them both truth serums and locking them in a closet together.” Harriet raises an eyebrow. “We are _not_ doing that, don’t be ridiculous, Harriet.”

“It doesn’t seem too bad to me, especially if we keep the admissions of truth well contained…” 

“Really? And how would you feel if someone had dosed up you and Ernst and left you in a closet when you were still married?” Mina quips. There is no real gravity or malice to her words, and Harriet laughs them off easily.

“Well, I suppose-“ 

“Shh, here he comes!” Mina leans back abruptly as she spies Edward approaching the shop door, mysteriously alone for the first time he started visiting some two months ago. Harriet gives him once over and gives Mina a look that says she approves of Alfred’s taste. “That will be £3.40, please,” Mina says, attempting to sound natural. Harriet hands over the money with a smile, and then hurries out of the shop without another word.

Edward offers Mina an awkward wave. “Just me today.”

“What have you done with Florence, turned her into a frog?”

“She’s swamped at the bakery, said you had a good potion for improved dexterity?” She’d also suggested Edward ask for a love potion, given how smitten he was, but he wasn’t about to announce that to Mina. 

Mina turns and picks out a bottle from the immense cabinet behind her, containing a dark blue liquid that bubbles just slightly. “It’s on the house,” Mina says, as Edward reaches for his wallet. 

“If you keep giving out free potions Florence will put you out of business,” Edward says, but he doesn’t protest, tucking the bottle into the pocket of his jacket, some ridiculously large denim thing that still manages to flatter him. “Is Alfred around today?”

Mina shakes her head. “He’s off sick.” The disappointment on his face is almost reassuring to her, but she still harbours some resentment towards him for the heartbreak he’s putting Alfred through.

“Is he okay? I could go and check on him…”  
  
“I’m not sure that’s the best idea, Edward.” Mina remembers Alfred’s face the night before. She’s _certain_ that Edward visiting him today is a _terrible_ idea. “He’s really sick, it might be best for you to steer clear until he’s better. I’m sure he’ll text you later or something.”

Mina knows it’s not her place to turn Edward away, but Alfred is curled up in bed, too tired to even drag himself to the kitchen for breakfast, and Mina is fairly sure it has _everything_ to do with Edward Drummond. He just needs a day or two to recover from the night before, and then she’s sure he’ll be back to his bright, loveable self.

She still feels a little bit guilty when she watches Edward leave, somewhat dejected. It’s for the best though, she knows that.

 

* * *

 

“Oh, thank fuck, Edward you’re back, get behind this counter right now and start making some coffees,” Florence half-yells at Edward the moment he gets in the door. There are smears of flour and icing and coffee all over her apron and her black t-shirt, and her curls are beginning to escape the usually-neat ponytail they’re pulled back into. It’s safe to say she looks more than a little bit frazzled.

 She necks the potion he hands her in one gulp, before throwing Edward an apron and walking back towards the till to deal with the growing line of customers.

The café can get like this from time to time, on bank holidays or sunny days, when the customers keep pouring in at an almost unmanageable rate. Florence can already feel Mina’s potion kicking in, though, allowing her to move faster, and pour coffees while cutting cake, while Edward does his best to keep up, until the last customer in the queue is served, and the two of them are granted a moment of reprieve.

“Did you get your love potion?” Florence teases, poking Edward in the side. Edward doesn’t laugh.

“Alfred wasn’t in today. He was off sick.”

“Okay, so? What, you can’t bear to go longer than a day without seeing him?”

“No, it’s not that, it’s just… when I offered to go and see him, Mina had this look in her eye, you know? Like she was warning me to stay away for a while.”

“Maybe Alfred’s just contagious at the moment,” Florence says in an attempt to reassure him, but she makes a mental note to ask Mina about it later. “I mean, if he’s sick then you don’t really want to catch it too, do you?”

“I guess, but-“

“No buts, Edward, you’re probably just overthinking this,” Florence says. “Now go and carry on writing your article about Brexit or tax evasion or whatever it is you’re covering this week. I’ve got this covered.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, you idiot. I run this bakery every day without your help, I think I can manage.”

Edward backs off with his hands in the air, before untying his apron and tossing it back to Florence, laughing when it hits her in the face. Needless to say, his coffee is cold when it arrives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you liked this, let me know what you thought of this new chapter! it's been a long time since i wrote a multichapter fic, so let me know if you think the plot is moving along too fast or stuff like that. i also don't usually include as much dialogue as i have in this fic, so by all means offer up some constructive criticism on that!
> 
> thank you so so so much for reading! ❤️


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay this chapter took a long time!! but it's here now!
> 
> quick note before you begin: samhain is celebrated Oct 31st to Nov 1st, and is commonly thought of as the time when the veil between the human world and the spirit world is thinnest. this is celebrated by witches in a number of ways (see the next chapter for a little more on that!) 
> 
> sabbats (not sabbath or shabbat) are also mentioned - samhain is an example of this, they're basically days over the course of the year where witches tend to gather together and celebrate. 
> 
> i hope you like this chapter!!

The first time Alfred visits Florence’s bakery, he’s a little taken aback. For starters, the smell of coffee and freshly baked cake hits him from outside, and only gets stronger when he enters. The interior is cute, decorated in pastel colours with enormous grey countertops lined with cakes and pastries and cookies, and a shelving unit behind containing baskets upon baskets of bread rolls and baguettes and flavoured loaves. Alfred doesn’t really know where to start.

Of course, his motive for visiting the bakery isn’t just the smell from outside. In fact, the main reason he’s visiting is because he knows Edward likes to work on his column in the café. God, he hopes that doesn’t make him sound like a stalker. 

He’s left Charlie at home, because most humans think it’s a little bit weird to bring your cat everywhere you go, even if your cat is your familiar, and he’ll admit to missing her a little, especially since Mina’s familiar, affectionately named George after her only brother, flutters alongside her, though perhaps a little conspicuous given how large he is.

Alfred spots Edward right away, sitting at the counter with his laptop open and a mug of coffee beside him, with Dottie sitting next to him, coloured dark grey to match the counter. Alfred pretends he hasn’t seen them as he approaches the till, where Florence is beaming at him and Mina. 

“Alfred, Mina, I’m so happy to see you outside of your shop! What can I get for you two?”

“That depends, what would you recommend?” Mina replies, and Florence’s face splits into a grin. Alfred almost feels like he’s invading a private moment.   
  
“For you? A latte with a shot of cinnamon, and a slice of apple pie. For Alfred, a cappuccino, and a slice of my freshly baked orange and poppy-seed loaf.”

“That sounds perfect,” Alfred says, resisting the urge to ask what Edward usually has.

“That’s Edward’s favourite too, you know,” Florence says, as she cuts a slice of cake for him, like she’s read his mind. Hell, he wouldn’t be surprised, he has no idea what kind of magic she’s into. She shares a glance with Mina, who looks a little less pleased than Florence, before she turns to make their coffees, and Alfred can’t quite decipher what it means.

Before Alfred can reply, Edward’s voice is calling out from behind them. “What are you saying about me?”

“I’m saying how boring you are, and how we all secretly loathe you,” Florence yells over her shoulder, and Alfred sees Edward raise his middle finger in response. 

“Hey, Al, why don’t you grab a seat? I’m gonna chat to Florence for a bit,” Mina says, with a rather pointed look. Florence slides his cappuccino onto a tray with his cake, and Alfred doesn’t need any further prompting, picking it up and looking around the café for a seat, not so subtly hoping that Edward will invite him to the seat next to him.

Edward looks absolutely stunning in his grey henley, which clings to him in a way that’s practically sinful, with the top two buttons popped open. Surely that shouldn’t be allowed in public?

“There’s a seat by me, Alfred.” _God_ , Edward’s smile is practically blinding as he moves his jacket off the chair to make space. “I’m about to take a break anyway, so I could use the entertainment.”

Alfred desperately hopes Edward can’t see him blushing as he takes a seat, his hands close to shaking from how loudly his heart is pounding. Oh god, what if Edward can hear it

 

* * *

 

“Tell me you didn’t say anything awful to him, Mina,” Florence says once Alfred has disappeared to take a seat next to Edward. 

“What do you mean?” 

“Don’t play innocent, come on Mina, he won’t tell me what really happened but I know you said something to Edward about Alfred, something about keeping his distance for a while because Alfred was “sick”.”

Mina sighs. “I might have asked him to keep his distance, just for a couple of days. But if you had seen Alfred you would understand. I’ve never seen him that way, Flo, he was a mess. He just needed a few days to cool off again.”

“Mina, you know it’s not our place to get involved,” Florence reaches over to place a hand over Mina’s.

“I’m just looking out for him,” Mina says, “but I am sorry if I hurt Edward in the process. No more meddling, I promise.” Her skin feels like it’s burning where Florence is touching it, but not at all in an unpleasant way.

 

* * *

 

“Can you believe how oblivious those two are?” Edward asks, nodding towards the till, where Florence is leaning on the counter with both elbows, listening to Mina talk animatedly with the most ridiculous lovestruck grin on her face.

Alfred is relieved that he’s provided an easy conversation topic. “Mina can’t stop talking about Florence, it’s almost painful.”

“I keep telling Florence to just ask her out, but she keeps talking about how she’s ‘playing the long game’, whatever the hell that means.” Alfred is uncomfortably reminded of his conversation with Mina only a few nights ago, leading to a somewhat nervous laugh.

“It means she can’t get up the nerve to actually go through with it.” They’re on dangerous territory. Why does Edward feel like they’re discussing more than just Mina and Florence right now?

“You know, I’m not saying we should intervene but…”

“We should totally intervene,” Alfred finishes Edward’s sentence for him. “The only question is how?”

“If Florence ever caught wind of the fact that we were meddling, I’m pretty sure she’d refuse to date Mina just to spite me, smitten as she is,” Edward sighs.

“Okay, so we engineer a series of circumstances that will drive them absolutely crazy with longing until they snap?” 

“Yeah, something like that. I was thinking of setting them up on blind dates.” 

“Edward, that’s dumb,” Alfred interjects, “what if they actually like their dates? Then it just causes more problems.”

“That’s why we set them up on _bad_ blind dates, and make sure they know about it. When the date goes terribly, we make ourselves conveniently unavailable so they turn to each other,” Edward grins. “It’s fool-proof!”

“You totally stole this idea from a Friends episode,” Alfred deadpans, “but it’s worth a try.” He’s trying not to dwell on the ‘conveniently unavailable’ part of Edward’s plan. Will they be being unavailable together, or will they be making separate excuses? 

“Okay, great! Now all we need to do is find terrible dates for them both,” Edward nods.

“Now let’s see, I already set Mina up with my sister, Adelaide, and that didn’t go too well, and her date with George was a disaster. Poor Mary is straight as a rod, and I suppose Clarence and Emily are both a little too old for her…”

“How many siblings do you have?” Edward stares, incredulous, as Alfred counts off his siblings on his hand.

 “Just those five,” Alfred laughs, “and another twelve half siblings.” He stares at Edward’s mildly horrified expression with a wry smile. “My parents were both married when they met. It caused quite the scandal when they eloped.”

“Oh, the Pagets, I remember that story!” 

“All good things, I hope,” Alfred jokes, leaning into Edward’s side to nudge him, and then recoiling almost instantly at the peculiar intimacy of the action. After a brief lull in the conversation, Alfred picks up his original thread again. “Perhaps I ought to stop setting Mina up with my siblings, it seems to be a recipe for disaster.”

“That’s probably for the best,” Edward smiles, and goddammit, Alfred’s heart melts.

“Hey, so I’ve been meaning to ask if you had plans for Samhain? The Sabbat is coming up and I know you and Florence don’t really have a coven to spend it with,” Edward’s face clouds over slightly when Alfred mentions it, and he suspects there’s some untold story there, but he doesn’t want to pry. “I know it’s difficult to spend the night alone, so I wanted you to know that our coven always has an open door policy, if you wanted to join us. It’s nothing special really, but-“ God, he’s rambling, he knows he’s rambling but he can’t stop, “- if you wanted to join us we usually just have a small gathering at Victoria’s house, we drink a little, pay our respects to people we’ve lost over the year and the like.”

Alfred can feel Edward’s eyes on him, even though he’s long since looked away. He doesn’t want to see what’s in Edward’s eyes, in case it’s disgust, or hurt. Maybe Edward and Florence already have plans, maybe they hate the idea of being part of a coven, maybe he’s offended and thinks that Alfred is just taking pity on him.

“Alfred, I-“ Edward’s voice doesn’t sound disgusted, or offended, in fact he sounds happy, “- I don’t know what to say.” 

“Obviously there’s no obligation to come-“ 

“But I want to,” Edward cuts him off, his voice tender, low. The moment feels so emotionally charged, Alfred isn’t sure he can handle it. “I’ve missed spending Sabbats with a coven, and I know Florence has too. It’s so nice of you to have even thought to offer, I-“ Is Alfred imagining things or is Edward getting choked up.

He turns, but, before he can say anything, Edward is pulling him into a tight hug, pulling him so close that Alfred can feel Edward’s heart beating against his chest. Does that mean Edward can feel how much Alfred’s heart is racing?

After a moment of shock, Alfred melts into the hug, pulling Edward close to him and catching the smell of coffee and something citrus on his skin – from the cake or from his bodywash, Alfred isn’t quite sure.

“Thank you.” Alfred can feel Edward’s breath on his collarbone, and damn him, he knew he should have done up one more button on his shirt, then maybe he wouldn’t have this problem, and this moment is _killing_ him because now he knows how Edward smells, he knows the rhythm of Edward’s heart, but he still wants _more_.

 

* * *

 

A week later, Edward shows up outside Alfred’s apartment at 7.30 on the dot, when Alfred texts him to give him the all clear. Mina has gone on her blind date with someone Edward knows from work, who is allegedly supremely boring, and Florence is out with Alfred’s sister, Adelaide, who she has absolutely nothing in common with, and Edward and Alfred have made plans to stay in and watch the results roll in while binge watching crappy TV.

Alfred opens the door barely three seconds after he knocks, and Edward is momentarily taken aback by his appearance. A far cry from the barely-buttoned-up button ups and skinny jeans Alfred wears most days, today he’s wearing sweatpants and a faded blue t-shirt. 

“Come in,” he says, stepping aside to usher Edward into his flat, “I’ve got popcorn and a pizza that I’m just about managing to keep warm without totally burning them,” he winces. “Did Mina tell you about the time she asked me to keep her dinner warm while she finished up a big order and I set her bowl of pasta on fire?”

“I… how?”

“I’m not even sure, it’s not like it’s a complicated spell,” Alfred shrugs. Edward laughs at him, taking off his jacket and hangs it on the coatrack by the door.

Is he imagining that look Alfred is giving him? He looks almost wistful. 

“Did you want anything to drink?” Alfred’s voice cuts through his thoughts. “I’ve got tea, coffee, or maybe something a little stronger…” Alfred wiggles his eyebrows as he opens a cupboard door to reveal a shelf filled with bottles of liquor. “I make a mean baileys hot chocolate.”

“That sounds perfect,” Edward smiles. There’s something about seeing Alfred like this, wandering around the kitchen in sweatpants, that causes a slight ache in Edward’s heart. He wants this, he wants Alfred, he wants a life like this.

But they’re just friends, so Edward says nothing.

 

* * *

 

The two of them are lying on the sofa, Alfred’s legs in Edward’s lap, Edward’s legs propped on the coffee table, when Mina texts Alfred:

_He’s so boring, Al_

_I’m not even staying for dessert_

_Prepare the ice cream, I’ll be home in like half an hour_

_Can’t believe I let you talk me into this_

_And now flo is on a date too and she’s probably having a great time and forgetting all about me_

Alfred shows his phone to Edward. It’s a clear success.

Florence texts Edward five minutes later:

_No offense to Alfred but I can’t believe you thought his sister was a good match for me_

_We have nothing in common_

_I’m coming home, I hope you saved me some cookies_

“And now to engineer a meeting,” Edward says, with a sly grin in Alfred’s direction.

He texts Florence to tell her he’s at Alfred’s, but maybe Mina will pop over and see her. Alfred texts Mina to say he’s busy, but maybe she could go and speak to Florence about it. Reluctant as they both are to discuss their disaster dates with each other, they both agree to meet at Edward and Florence’s apartment, which results in Alfred and Edward sharing a stupidly cheesy high-5.

“Now we just need to sit and wait, and hope that those awful dates were enough to make them realise how good they’d be together,” Alfred says, leaning into Edward’s side just a little with a stupidly cheesy grin.

Mina texts him an hour later saying she’s staying the night, because it’s getting late and maybe it’s easier if she and Edward just swap over for the night. It’s only 10.30.

Alfred texts back a winky face emoji to which Mina responds _EW NOT LIKE THAT YOU PERVE_. Maybe he deserved that. 

The evening is considered a grand success, but Edward can feel his heart high in his throat when all the pizza and popcorn is eaten and their drinks are finished, and the alcohol is thrumming through his veins – Alfred’s hot chocolates tasted like there was more baileys in them than anything else – and he can’t tell if it’s the drink or Alfred that’s making his knees weak. The thought of sleeping in the same apartment as Alfred, even in different rooms, has him wondering what Alfred looks like in the morning when he’s just woken up, with messy hair and sleepy eyes.

It’s so domestic that it makes his heart ache.

Eventually he finds his way to Mina’s room, and falls asleep fully dressed, thinking of Alfred.

 

* * *

 

Florence waltzes into Mina and Alfred’s shop bright and early the next morning while Mina is still setting up. Her and Mina had parted ways at around 6am, when Florence had gotten up to bake the rest of the cakes and breads for the morning, but Florence had found herself with a little extra time, and had decided that the moment had come. 

Seeing Mina after their equally awful blind dates had made her realise how tired she was of waiting for something more to just blossom on its own. It was time to make a move before someone else realised how incredible Mina was and decided to snap her up for themselves.

Which is why she’s at Mina’s counter, wringing her hands and trying not to lose all power of speech before she can get the words out.

“One love potion please,” Florence says with a bright smile, but she immediately regrets her word choice. Why on earth did she decide to say that? That’s the most ridiculous way she could have ever chosen to try and ask Mina out.

Mina’s face falls instantly. “You know I don’t do love potions, Flo, it’s a bad kind of magic,” she says. “Who’s the lucky girl? It can’t be your date from last night…”

Florence hates herself. Really, she does. In fact, she’d rather like to be swallowed up by a dark abyss right at this very moment.

“It was, uh, it was just a joke.”

“I figured.” Mina manages half of a wry smile. “But seriously, who is she?” God, Mina looks like she might cry the moment Florence leaves. She’s making such a mess of this.

“I’ve done this all wrong, fuck,” Florence curses under her breath. “I was asking for you, the ‘potion’-“ she puts airquotes around the word potion “- was for you.”

“For me?” Mina looks confused, and honestly Florence can’t blame her.

“Yes, I, uh, oh fuck, can I start over?” Mina nods, seemingly still unsure as to where Florence is going with this. “Okay. Right. Mina?” 

“Yes?”

“Would you like to go out with me sometime?” It feels weird to finally say it. But it also feels right, and, judging by the way Mina’s face lights up, Florence assumes Mina feels the same way. “Maybe we could go and get dinner or we could go and see a movie or-“ Florence is cut off by Mina jumping up to press a quick kiss onto her lips.

When she pulls back, Mina is grinning at her. “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that.”

Florence doesn’t reply, she just walks around the counter and pulls Mina’s lips back to hers, revelling in the way she tastes, and the feeling of her soft hair, and the soft movement of her lips. It’s everything she’s ever wanted and so much more, and- 

“Oh, fuck yes!” Alfred’s voice interrupts their oh-so-perfect moment, causing them to jump apart. 

“I knew it! I knew it would work!” Edward chimes in. Florence turns to see the two of them leaning smugly against the doorframe

“It?” Mina asks, fixing a hard stare on the two of them. “What do you mean ‘it’?”

“I, uh, wow, okay, look at the time, I need to go and work on my column,” Edward says, sending a quick smile Alfred’s way and then hurrying out of the door.

“Alfred?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Go back to kissing your girlfriend, I’ll finish setting up,” Alfred smiles charmingly, and Mina can’t really find much reason to protest.

She’ll ask him again later, she thinks, when she’s not distracted by Florence’s lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! i think i covered the main bits of witch lore i mentioned in this chapter in the first note, but if i mentioned anything that you didn't know then let me know and i'll explain it as best i can for you!
> 
> i thrive on feedback - i'd love to know what you guys think of this chapter!! 
> 
> thank you again for reading <3


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> samhain was just going to be a small segment, and then it turned into a 2700 word monster so i gave it its own chapter.
> 
> also, i meant to mention this last chapter, but luckymoony drew [another amazing piece of art](http://luckymoony.tumblr.com/post/175411813409/another-fanart-for-because-seconds-not-the-sames) for this fic and it's wonderful!!
> 
> quick recap on the witch lore (you probably remember, but just in case, and in a little bit more detail): samhain takes place around the same time as halloween (it's usually celebrated from sunset on oct 31st to sunset on nov 1st). it's believed to be the day when spirits can walk freely in our world because the veil between worlds is at its thinnest. it's often treated as a time to honour the dead and honour spirits. there are a variety of traditions - the one i've chosen is just the one that fits best with the drama i want. some traditions involve setting up an altar for the dead, some involve having a feast and laying a place and serving food for spirits. there's all kinds of ways to celebrate - i don't want to overwhelm you with information but if you're interested i'd recommend researching it!
> 
> disclaimer: this is all according to my research. if anyone wants to correct me on any of this then please let me know! i don't want to spread any incorrect information!
> 
> also a note on witch covens, because im not sure how clear i made it within the fic: generally they aren't huge - covens tend not to be massive (13 is the ideal number apparently) so im interpreting that in a way that generally you probably don't necessarily end up in the same coven as your parents or siblings long term - it's kind of like a chosen family thing? my interpretation of covens is that it's basically a group of witches who are friends who have a high priestess who is also their friend. i hope that makes sense? im going to find a way to try and incorporate that at some point, but since we're meeting some of the coven in this chapter i thought i'd clarify.
> 
> sorry for the lengthy note, thanks for bearing with me, i hope you enjoy the chapter!!

It’s been more than a few years since Edward was even invited to spend Samhain with anyone other than Florence, so to say he’s feeling nervous when he knocks on the door of Victoria’s house is a rather severe understatement. The only thing keeping him from turning and running in the opposite direction was the fact that he knew Alfred was already inside waiting for him, and that Florence would be there too, with her now-girlfriend, Mina.

A petite woman wearing a dress that vaguely resembled a glitterball answered the door hardly five seconds after he knocked. She’s quickly joined by a dog, who rushes over to Edward and starts jumping up at him eagerly. 

“Dash, behave,” the woman commands, and the dog, presumably her familiar, drops back to sit behind her, tail wagging. Her familiar tamed, she looks back up at Edward somewhat expectantly, her head titled to the side a little.

“Hi, I, uh, Alfred told me to come?” Edward stammers, mentally groaning at his inarticulacy.

“Oh, you must be Edward!” She grins. “I’m Victoria, we have all heard _so_ much about you.” Victoria grabs him by the hand and half-drags him into the house. “Alfred! Your boyfriend is here!”

Edward can feel himself blushing. “He’s not my boyfriend-“ 

“Hush now,” She says, ushering him into a room filled with people lounging on sofas and sitting on the floor, chatting and drinking. Alfred spots him immediately and scrambles to his feet to join him and Victoria. “Do you want anything to drink?”

“Vicky, don’t frighten him,” Alfred says, placing a hand on Edward’s shoulder with an easy smile, “otherwise he won’t come back.” Edward can feel the familiar feeling of Charlie rubbing up against his ankles. Dottie pokes her head out of his sleeve, but then darts quickly back in again when she sees how many people there are.

“You’re no fun, Alfred,” Victoria pouts. Before either of them can answer her, there’s another knock at the door, presumably Mina and Florence. “Are you okay to get Edward a drink?”

“Yes, your majesty,” Alfred performs a mock bow, and Victoria hits his shoulder playfully on the way past. “She can be a lot to deal with, I hope she didn’t scare you off or anything.”

“Not at all, she’s lovely.” Edward offers a reassuring smile. He’s still finding it a little bit daunting in all honesty – he hasn’t been in a room with this many other witches since he left his last coven.

“Are you thirsty? I can get you a drink, or we can just jump right in with introductions?”

“I’m okay for now, so I guess that leaves meeting the others as the alternative?” Edward’s stomach feels like it’s full of butterflies, though that might also have something to do with the fact that Alfred’s hand hasn’t left his arm since he arrived, sliding down from his shoulder to just a gentle touch on his forearm, to grabbing his hand and pulling him in the direction of the rest of the group.

“Come on, they’re a nice bunch, they’ll love you.”

 

* * *

 

Over the course of the next few hours, Edward meets more witches than he’s met in the past five years. Alfred introduces him to Harriet first, a dear friend from childhood, apparently, and her now-fiancé Ernst. The pair have quite the story to tell, it seems, smiling awkwardly as Alfred gives Edward a brief summary of the past five years – one divorce, two years of pining, and three months of dating later, the two had finally decided to make things official, complicated though the situation might be.

Alfred leads Edward away before Harriet can get into custody arrangements for her two children from her previous marriage, and leads him over to Victoria’s husband Albert. Edward gets on with him like a house on fire.

They debate politics, and modern technology, and how it works alongside the witching community, and how they are adapting to new challenges. Dottie emerges from Edward’s sleeve to perch on his shoulder, emboldened by Edward’s sudden confidence. He’s found stable ground among these new witches, and suddenly he feels less nervous.

Alfred floats by every now and again to check on him, but mostly leaves Edward to his debate with Albert. He has personally never been especially interested in the politics concerning the blend between mundane and the magical, so long as he can keep his little shop open, so he makes conversation with Emma, who is loitering at the corner of the room with her familiar, a raven, perched on her shoulder.

“That’s quite the man you have there, Alfred,” she comments, with a wry smile. Alfred doesn’t take the bait.

“He is quite remarkable, but he’s not mine, unfortunately.”

“But you wish he was." 

Alfred sighs. “Am I always this transparent?”

“I’ve known you your whole life Alfred, I know when you’re in love,” Emma says. “And besides, there are no secrets in this coven.”

“Dammit, Mina,” Alfred curses under his breath. “So everybody here knows?”

“Everybody except lover boy over there. He can’t stop looking over at you, Alfred. Did you ever stop to think he feels the same?”

Emma is wise beyond her years, and Alfred knows he really ought to take her advice. Perhaps he really is being foolish, holding back to preserve a friendship which was built on Alfred’s infatuation anyway, but every time he thinks about coming clean to Edward, he feels immediately nauseous. It’s better if he keeps it to himself for now. 

Alfred realises somewhat distantly that he never replied to Emma, so he turns to her with an attempt at a smile. “I’m going to the kitchen to get a drink, do you want anything?” He needs to leave this conversation, needs to forget it happened, needs to imagine that he isn’t so obvious in his affection, because if everyone can see it then that means Edward can too. Alfred doesn’t want to think about that possibility.

He feels like he’s suffocating in this conversation, like he’s gasping for air in a room slowly emptying of it, because _god_ , what If Edward knows? What if, this whole time, Edward has only been humouring him, trying to let him down easy like the nice guy he is.

Alfred doesn’t wait for Emma’s response, pushing out of the room in the exact opposite direction of the kitchen, walking down familiar corridors with Charlie at his heels until he’s outside in Victoria’s garden, far enough from Edward that it almost feels like he can breathe again. Almost.

Mina finds him after a little while – Five minutes? An hour? Only a few seconds? – sat on the swing seat at the end of the garden, swinging back and forth. Alfred wonders if Emma sent her, or if she saw what happened. He hopes it’s the former, because at least that means he didn’t make a scene.

“Hiding from someone?” Mina asks, taking a seat beside him as gracefully as possible considering he doesn’t stop swinging for her, with George fluttering beside her and landing on Alfred’s shoulder. Alfred doesn’t reply. “Okay, don’t talk. That’s fine. I’ll just wait here with you.”

They swing back and forth in silence for a few minutes, and Alfred can practically feel the air between them crackling with everything he needs to say to her, everything he wants to confess.

“Where’s Florence?” he asks instead. “Don’t tell me you ditched your date to chase after me.”

“She’s fine. She got talking to Nancy about using magic runes in clothing designs, I don’t think she’ll even notice I’m gone.”

“You don’t have to wait with me though. I just… I need a moment.”

“Emma told me what happened. She feels really bad, you know. She didn’t mean to upset you or anything.” Charlie meows from the opposite side of him as if in agreement with Mina.

“I know she didn’t, I just… I’ve never felt about anyone the way I feel about Edward. It’s fucking terrifying, Mina. I spend every single waking moment thinking about him, and then I fucking dream about him too. And now here he is, and he’s chatting with everyone and I can’t help but think that this is what it would be like if-“ His words cut off with a sob.

Mina wraps an arm around his shoulders and he lets his head fall into the crook of her neck, crying until his tears dampen her shirt. She whispers soothingly to him, half-wishing she’d brought her bag, which is filled with assorted potions, out the garden with her. Perhaps she might have been able to offer him something to ease his heartache for a while. Not that he’d accept it.

Eventually, Alfred sits up with a sigh, wiping his eyes with a sniff. “I’m sorry about your shirt,” he mumbles.

“Nothing a little magic can’t fix.” Mina whispers a soft incantation, and the damp patch on her shirt dries up until it looks like it was never there. “Not much I can do about puffy eyes, unfortunately.”

Alfred shrugs. “I’ll just wait out here until my face calms down a little.” He sniffs again, and Mina passes him a tissue, which he takes with a grateful smile. “You truly are a pearl among women, Mina.” 

Mina grins and leans over to knock into his side. “Don’t get poetic on me now, you big sap.”

“I’m being serious, you’ve put up with a lot of my crap, Mina. I don’t know how I can ever truly thank you for that.”

For a few brief seconds, the moment is tender, and sincere, and then Mina strokes her chin with a thoughtful air. “I’ll take payment in cash.” Just like that, they’re laughing, and all the tension before dissipates as they fall back into an easy rhythm. Edward’s face appears briefly in Alfred’s mind as they laugh, a snapshot of that moment on his sofa when they laughed so hard they were shaking. Alfred brushes it aside.

 

* * *

 

They return to the party some ten minutes later, and Edward finds Alfred immediately, asking where he’d disappeared off to. There’s something slightly giddy about Edward, in the slight sway when he tries to stand still, and the loudness of his voice that tells Alfred he’s had a few drinks. Alfred manages to placate him with some lie about going out to fetch some more ice.

As the night wears on, the group settles down, piling onto sofas and armchairs and sitting with legs sprawled out across one another and bodies pressed tight together. Alfred finds himself sandwiched between Edward and Harriet, and he is painstakingly aware of every single millimetre of his body that is touching Edward’s. 

Edward is toeing the line between tipsy and drunk, though the fresh drink in his hand suggests he’s going to step right over that line very soon. Alfred finds him really rather endearing like this, with pink cheeks and not much of a verbal filter and fewer reservations about reaching over and grabbing his hand. In fact, Alfred would say he rather liked drunk Edward if it wasn’t so damn confusing for him.

“Hey Alfred?” Edward snaps Alfred of his daze with a dorky grin. “Everyone here seems to have a mark on them somewhere? Like a line with one and three quarter diamonds on it? Is it some kind of coven thing?”

Alfred laughs at the way Edward’s voice lilts up questioningly at the end of each sentence. “It’s a protective rune for peace and unity. I guess you could say it’s an initiation ritual of sorts – Vicky encouraged us all to let her tattoo it onto us, but we had the choice. It’s just her looking out for us more than anything else, you know?”

“I’ve never noticed yours before though,” Edward sighs almost comically, flopping back onto the sofa. “Harriet’s is on her finger, Albert has his on his shoulder, Victoria has hers on her wrist, but you-“ Edward waves his hand vaguely- “I have no idea where yours is.”

“It’s at the top of my spine – I guess you can’t usually see it because of my shirts.” Alfred turns and pulls down the collar of his shirt to show Edward the small rune, marked out in black ink. Edward’s hand reaches out to ghost over it, his feather-light touch making Alfred shiver. He quickly changes the subject. “Mina has hers in the same place. Vicky did them, stick and poke style. It hurt like a bitch. I can’t believe I let her tattoo me again after that.” He rambles as he turns back to face Edward.

“You have two tattoos?” Edward gapes at him.

“Come on, Edward, it’s not like my other one is hidden. You’re an observant man, don’t tell me you missed it,” Alfred says, holding up his arm to show Edward the small constellation on his wrist. “It’s the constellation for Cancer, my star sign. I figured if I’m doing all this fortune telling, astrology crap, I may as well look the part.”

Again, Edward reaches out to touch it, and Alfred can’t help but wonder if Edward can feel how hard his heart is pounding through the thin skin of his wrist. “It’s beautiful,” Edward says, tracing the lines between the stars like he’s connecting the dots.

Before Alfred can fall too deeply into the moment, Albert and Victoria announce that it’s time to light the bonfire out in the garden, and, just like that, they all pile out of the house, sitting on cushions and picnic blankets and the occasional tree stump around the unlit bonfire. Harriet does the honours – her powers lie in manipulating the elements, but she has always favoured fire, so it seems only fitting that she light it.

Victoria passes papers and pens around the circle, causing Edward to look at Alfred in confusion as everyone else begins to write, wondering what on earth he’s supposed to do.   
  
“You’ve never done this before?” Alfred asks. 

“My old coven was more of a feast and altar kind of group,” Edward says, a little sheepish. He knows every coven celebrates in different ways, but he hadn’t really thought to ask after Alfred and his coven’s traditions before.

“You write something you want to let go of. A habit, or an attachment, or maybe someone you’ve lost. We’ll all form a circle, and then we burn them, and we imagine a new life. Victoria will lead the circle, it’s all quite easy to grasp, don’t worry.” Alfred smiles, patting Edward’s shoulder. He can see Mina leading Florence through it on the other side of the bonfire. It’s funny, Alfred and Mina usually do this together – they normally sit next to each other and joke about things they’re letting go of, but this time it feels like there’s some slight distance between them, some kind of resentment on his part. He hates that.

Alfred stares down at his own piece of paper, then over at Edward. He’s been thinking a lot recently about what he should be letting go of, what habit he should be changing, and right there, in that moment, he realises he finally knows what it is he has to change. 

He writes one single word, clear as day, on his paper, folding it quickly and placing it in the bowl being passed around. Edward smiles over at him, with the firelight catching in his hair and creating shadows across his face. For a moment, Alfred almost regrets what he wrote. In that split second, he wants to climb across the circle and snatch his paper back. But it’s too late. And this is the right decision. 

When Victoria burns their slips of paper, Edward’s hand is warm in his, somehow feeling like more than just a bond keeping the circle intact, but Alfred knows what it is he must imagine, what it is he should be thinking of instead. As the papers turn to ash, Alfred watches his hopes and dreams, and all his endless pining from the past few months go up in smoke. He watches his own careful handwriting blacken and crumble until the single word he had written is no longer visible.

He’s letting go. He’s letting him go.

_Edward._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, i know there was no fun alfred mishap anecdote, but i did include a few cool magic things i've been meaning to bring in as worldbuilding for a while as an alternative! and don't worry, next chapter definitely has one (and im gonna see if i can work in a second to make up for it)
> 
> also shit will be hitting the fan next chapter. i hope you guys are ready.
> 
> thank you so much for reading! you guys commenting genuinely keeps me motivated to carry on writing! <3 <3


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this one is long, because i wanted to get back on track with my chapter plan, so i bolted the first part of what was going to be chapter 6 onto the end of this chapter. i hope it still flows okay and also i hope that a chapter that's almost 4000 words doesn't make you bored.
> 
> shit is finally happening, you guys. unlike last chapter, which was literally just one event, you've got like a million different events happening at once.
> 
> anyway, i think that's enough said. i don't think there's any big chunks of witch lore to explain for this chapter, but hmu in the comments if you have any questions
> 
> enjoy!!

Alfred meets Jamie quite by accident.

There’s a new bookshop just across the road, barely a few months old, that Alfred has been meaning to visit since the shop first opened, both to welcome the owner to the street, and to see if there’s anything he can add to his bookshelves. When he eventually makes it to the bookshop, a week or so after Samhain, armed with a gift basket of tonics and a deck of tarot cards he falls in love with the shop immediately.

There are shelves stacked all the way up to the ceiling, with ladders on rails running around the shop for ease of access, and several small reading nooks scattered around the rather spacious shop floor. Alfred spots a set of stairs leading down to a basement, and another set leading up to a mezzanine which wraps around the whole shop. Alfred could spend all day exploring.

“Can I help you find anything?” A voice from the counter at the back of the shop makes him jump, and Charlie, who had followed him to the shop, quickly circles to hide behind his legs.

Alfred is a little dumbstruck for a moment when he spots the speaker, sat with a copy of _The Picture of Dorian Gray_ in his hand, with glasses covering big brown eyes. Alfred really needs to stop falling for anyone who smiles in his direction.

“Oh, uh, sorry,” Alfred mumbles, realising he has yet to reply to the handsome stranger’s question, “I’m actually here to see you, you’re the owner right?”

“Right.” God, it’s so hard not to get distracted by all that gorgeous dark skin on show where his v-neck dips low.

“I’m Alfred, I own the shop across the street with my friend Mina, I’ve been meaning to stop by to say hi.” Alfred hands him the basket from Mina.

“Oh, the potions and palm reading place?”

“That’s the one!” Alfred says, hoping he doesn’t sound weird or overly chirpy. 

“Look, I gotta ask, is all that witch stuff legit? Like, is it Harry Potter style magic, or is it just like a religion?” Alfred has to admire his honesty. Not a lot of humans would feel comfortable enough asking. 

“It’s legit, although not quite in the Harry Potter kind of way. I would do a spell to prove it, but I’m afraid I might accidentally turn you into a mouse that would end up getting chased by Charlie until someone else managed to catch you and turn you back.”

“That’s oddly specific.” The stranger looks slightly unnerved.

“It may have happened once or twice. Maybe three times at most. Well, four, but the last time was deliberate.” Alfred stammers. He feels nervous, and he hates that.

“Deliberate?”

God, Alfred isn’t making the best first impression. “You have siblings?” 

“No.”

“Ah, that explains it then.” Finally, Alfred earns a laugh from the man, and _god_ does that make him somehow even more attractive.

“I’m Jamie. It’s nice to meet you.” Jamie shakes Alfred’s hand, shifting the gift basket onto one arm. “You didn’t make any of these potions, did you?”

Alfred laughs. “I gave up potion making a long time ago, don’t worry. My friend Mina is a pro, though. I’m the palm reading, fortune telling kind. It’s safer, trust me.” 

“Oh, I believe you, don’t worry.” Jamie grins. “Can I hook you up with any books? I do have a witchcraft section in the basement, although it’s pretty limited…” 

“I’m more into fiction myself. I saw you were reading Oscar Wilde; he’s a favourite of mine.” Alfred hopes Jamie is picking up on his subtle clue.

“The world is changed because you are made of ivory and gold,” Jamie quotes. “The curves of your lips rewrite histories.” Alfred should be melting into a little puddle right about now because _holy shit_ , but somehow he remains relatively composed. Charlie, on the other hand, is sniffing around Jamie’s ankles somewhat curiously.

“Shit, how did you know that was my favourite quote from the book?”

“Come on, that’s like every little gay kid’s favourite quote. That or Basil’s confession quote.” Jamie’s smile freezes for a second. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to assume, I just-“ 

“It’s okay, don’t worry about it. You’re right, so…” Alfred smiles easily at him.

There’s a moment of pregnant silence before Jamie speaks up. “Hey, so could I get your number? You know, in case I have any emergencies requiring magical assistance?”

“I’m pretty sure I’m not the best person to call in that situation,” Alfred dodges the question. He’s not sure why. Jamie is perfect for him. If they’d met just a few months earlier he’d already be absolutely smitten.   
  
“Okay, well then can I get your number anyway? Maybe we can go out sometime?” Jamie shoves his hands into his pockets. He’s nervous, Alfred realises. When was the last time a guy seemed this nervous to ask him out?

“Yeah, maybe.” Alfred smiles, leaning over the counter and grabbing a notepad and pen next to the till. He scribbles down his number, even though Jamie has his phone halfway out of his pocket, and tears off the sheet, pressing it into Jamie’s hand with a wink.

“I’ll call you!” Jamie calls, as Alfred saunters out of the shop with Charlie close behind.

 

* * *

 

“Florence, stop what you are doing right this second, we have an emergency!” Mina yells as she bursts through the doors of Florence’s bakery. Unfortunately, she is met with the stares of about ten people standing in line in front of the till, looking mildly pissed off. “Oh, uh, sorry, I can wait,” Mina stammers, stepping quietly into the queue, staring at the floor to avoid eye-contact with any of Florence’s customers.

When she eventually reaches the till, her girlfriend looks fairly bemused, pressing a quick kiss to her cheek. “What’s the big emergency?”

Mina glances around the café, and isn’t surprised to spot Edward working on his column hardly a few feet away. “Not here,” she whispers, somewhat conspiratorially.

“Mina, what? I don’t underst-“

“Shhh!” Mina cuts her off, hurrying to the other side of the counter and grabbing Florence’s hand to drag her to the kitchen. Florence just about manages to ask Edward to cover for her before Mina shuts the door behind them. 

“You didn’t just bring me out here to make out, did you?” Florence waggles her eyebrows, and Mina can’t help but giggle.

“I wish. Trust me, if we weren’t dealing with a dire situation right now we’d be doing more than just making out. But enough of that!” Mina shakes her head like it’s an etch-a-sketch, as though she’ll be able to get rid of the oh-so-enjoyable image forming there. “Alfred has a date!”

“He what?!” Florence yells. Mina shushes, her, reminding her that the kitchen isn’t exactly soundproof. “Sorry,” she whispers, “he what?”

“Yeah, with the guy who runs the bookshop across the road. Apparently he quoted Oscar Wilde and everything.” 

“You don’t sound as pleased about this as I thought you’d be. I thought you’d be happy to see him moving on?”

Mina sighs. “He’s not over Edward, that’s the thing. I’m worried this is just some rebound relationship that’s just going to hurt him and Edward even more.”

“Okay, I get that, but why did you drag me out here? It’s not like we can do anything about it.” 

“I mean that’s not strictly true…” Mina rocks back and forth on her heels just a little.

“Mina, you know we can’t get involved. It’s not our place to mess with their love lives.”

“Okay, but think about it, Flo! I mean, they messed with ours and look where it got us. Can you honestly tell me you would have asked me out if they hadn’t set us up on those awful dates and then arranged for us to meet up after?”

Florence hesitates. Mina makes a good point – Florence knows that most of her drive to actually go through with it came from the night before. “Okay,” Florence relents. “What’s the plan?”

 

* * *

 

They’ve  tried everything. 

A drop of potion in Jamie’s food that makes him break out in a rash on their first date (nothing serious, and nothing that won’t disappear overnight, of course)? Alfred had rushed him back to their apartment and asked if Mina had a tonic to help.

A torrential downpour right in the middle of a romantic picnic (though that has less to do with a spell and more to do with Florence’s ability to see the future and some clever scheduling)? They ended up making out like they were in some sappy romcom.

Hell, Mina even slips him a little bit of a truth serum, and all she finds out is that he’s absolutely perfect. The only bad thing he’s ever done, apparently, is giving his little brother a wedgie one time in primary school in front of everyone.

He tips well, dresses like he belongs on the runway, he’s a total book nerd, just like Alfred, he quotes poetry for fucks sake. It’s like the universe invented him with the specific intention of blocking any kind of relationship between Edward and Alfred.

“Flo, I don’t think there’s anything else we can try,” Mina huffs, flopping onto the sofa and immediately curling into her girlfriend’s side.

Florence presses a kiss to Mina’s forehead. “Maybe the universe is trying to tell us it’s not meant to be.” 

“But it _is_! Alfred’s not all in, I can just tell it. Maybe if we could just make him realise that somehow.” Mina groans in frustration.

“He hasn’t even told Edward yet. They get lunch together every day, and Alfred hasn’t told him about the guy he’s been dating for two weeks now.”

“Flo, you’re a genius!”

“I am?”

“He hasn’t told Edward; that’s about the most obvious sign there is!” Mina jumps up, standing in front of Florence, waving her arms as she begins to pace. 

“Well yeah, and?” 

“We’ve spent all this time trying to ruin their dates, but we didn’t realise the most obvious thing we could do to make Alfred realise his mistake!”

“I’m not sure this is a good idea, Mina. Don’t you think this is taking things a little far?”

“It’s not like we have any other choice. If Alfred stays with Jamie then all three of them end up getting hurt.” 

Florence stares at Mina for a few seconds, and then, yet again, she finds herself giving in. “Okay, what do we tell him?”

 

* * *

 

Edward hates blind dates. In fact, he _loathes_ them, but Florence had set one up for him, and he kind of owed her one after her disaster date with Alfred’s sister. The one thing he’s not expecting when he arrives at the restaurant where Florence told him to go, is to see Alfred, already inside with someone Edward doesn’t recognise.

It can’t be a date though. Surely Alfred would have told him if he had a date. They were friends. They told each other everything.

The man across from Alfred leans over to grab his hand. Edward swallows. It’s definitely a date.

He has half a mind to turn back now and run in the opposite direction, but he promised Florence he would go on at least one date with her friend, even if he is head over heels for Alfred. Maybe he can sneak in without Alfred spotting him. 

No such luck. 

He’s seated on the table next to Alfred and his date, with barely a few feet between them. Is he imagining things or does Alfred look a little guilty when Edward sits down? 

“Edward, hi,” he says, not sounding nearly as enthusiastic as he usually does. “Uh, this is Jamie, he works in the bookstore opposite my shop. Jamie, this is Edward, he’s roommates with Florence, you know the woman who runs the bakery?”

“It’s nice to meet you, Edward,” Jamie shakes his hand with an easy smile. 

“Likewise.” Edward hopes his smile doesn’t look too forced.

Alfred speaks up again after a beat of awkward silence. “Are you meeting someone?” 

“Uh, yeah, Florence set me up. Let’s call it payback.” Alfred chuckles, and then turns to explain the situation to Jamie.

Edward takes a moment to take stock of the man Alfred is with. God, he’s practically perfect – the embodiment of tall, dark, and handsome. He’s wearing jeans with a nice shirt, and there’s a blazer hanging around the back of his chair, and it’s clear that he puts effort into looking good, with his hair sitting perfectly in place and his dark skin practically glowing. From the sounds of things, he’s also a genuinely nice person. God, it would be so much easier if Edward could hate him.

When Alfred finishes the story, they fall into another somewhat uncomfortable silence.

“Look, I don’t want to impose, I can ask to be moved to another table-“

“No, not at all!” Jamie cuts him off. “A friend of Alfred’s is a friend of mine. Besides, your date will be here soon. It’ll be like a double date.” Alfred smiles a little nervously, and Edward nods, forcing another grin.

“Yeah, uh, soon.”

 

* * *

 

It’s been an hour, and, at this point, Edward is fairly sure he’s either been stood up, or there was never a date to begin with and this whole idea was a ploy to get Edward there to ruin Alfred’s date.

The happy couple had taken pity on him – mostly Jamie in all honesty, convincing him to join their table and order with them. He had tried to protest, he really had, but Jamie was difficult to argue with. Damn him for being so nice.

When they finish their main meals and their plates are cleared, Edward decides it’s about time he made himself scarce and let Alfred finish his date without interruption. Regardless of reasons, it had been pretty clear that Alfred had felt uncomfortable with Edward there.

“I think I ought to make a move,” Edward stands, reaching into his pocket to fetch his wallet. “I’m sorry if I interrupted your date.” 

“Hey, no worries, it was a pleasure to meet you. Maybe we should do this again sometime when you manage to track down that date of yours.” Jamie is so charismatic and genuine it almost hurts. He’s the perfect guy, Edward can’t blame Alfred for picking Jamie over him. 

“Uh, yeah, sounds great!” Alfred makes an attempt to sound enthusiastic.

“Look, you guys enjoy dessert on me, okay?” Edward smiles, throwing a little extra cash onto the table on top of the money for his meal.

Alfred starts. “Oh, Edward, you don’t have to-“ 

“Please, it’s the least I can do.”

“I appreciate that, man. You’re a great guy, you know. Whoever stood you up is a dumbass,” Jamie says. 

“Oh, uh, thanks,” Edward musters up another smile. “I, uh, I guess I’ll see you around?”

“See you around,” Alfred echoes.

“Is he a witch too?” Edward hears Jamie whisper as he turns and hurries out of the restaurant. He doesn’t hear Alfred’s reply, but he does hear him laugh. Edward has never felt more relieved to escape from somewhere in his life.  

 

* * *

 

Alfred has to admit that he’s a little surprised by the fact that every single one of his dates with Jamie seems to have gone horribly awry somehow, to the point where it’s only logical to wonder if someone is trying to intervene. Mina is a pretty solid candidate.

When Edward arrives for a blind date on the table next to him, and is subsequently stood up, Alfred’s suspicions are all but confirmed. The fact that he spots an iridescent butterfly hovering outside the restaurant when he and Jamie leave is the final straw. 

“Mina?” Alfred yells as he slams the door to their flat behind him, even though he knows Mina hates it, because goddammit he’s pissed.

Mina pokes her head around the door of her bedroom. “I, uh, I’m kind of busy right now, Al.” Florence says something Alfred can’t quite make out, but, judging by the way Mina’s cheeks flush, it’s far from innocent.

“It can wait. We need to talk.” Something in Alfred’s tone must set off alarm bells in Mina’s head, because her smile drops and her entire posture seems to shift.

“Okay,” she whispers, before ducking back into the room and emerging a few seconds later in a fluffy, white dressing gown with big, blue spots. “What’s the matter?”

“Tell me you haven’t been trying to fuck up my dates with Jamie.”

“Alfred, what, I-?” Mina avoids his gaze. That’s about all the proof he needs. 

“Are you kidding me, Mina? I mean, are you actually fucking serious right now?” Alfred turns away and paces the length of the room, running a hand through his hair.

“Hey, before you get on your big high-horse, don’t forget you meddled with me and Flo, and that worked out just fine.”

Alfred comes to a halt on the opposite side of the room. “We set you up on crappy dates! We didn’t try and ruin your dates with perfectly nice people you met on your own when you were trying to move on from someone else!” Alfred is just barely keeping it together; his hands are shaking, and he can feel a few tears springing to his eyes.

“You can’t just ‘move on’, Alfred, you’re still in love with Edward-“

“Which is why I need to move on!” His voice cracks. “He’s not interested, Mina. If he was, maybe we might have actually gone somewhere, but the fact of the matter is that he doesn’t love me the way I love him.” 

Mina sighs. Alfred is so oblivious to the way Edward looks at him, to the way Edward practically lights up in his presence, it’s almost painful. “You don’t know that for sure.”

“I’m not naïve, Mina. I’m not going to break my heart time and time again waiting for him, okay, not all love stories work out like you and Florence. You guys are the lucky ones, okay, you’re the exception, not the majority.” God, Alfred is trying so hard not to break down, because he’s _so angry_ , but somehow verbalising everything that’s been playing like a loop in his head for the past few months makes it hurt even more.

Mina flinches away when Alfred brings up Florence. “Don’t start attacking what I have just because you haven’t found it yet.” 

“I’m not wrong though, am I? You guys have it great, because you got your happy ever after, and now you’re trying to meddle in mine. Did you ever stop to think that I actually like this guy? That maybe he’s good for me?” 

Mina brushes off his comments about her and Florence this time. He’s hurt, and he’s lashing out, and she knows that, so she doesn’t retaliate, despite the anger starting to boil within her. “He’s not good for you, Alfred, he’s a rebound.”

“Don’t you have to have been in a relationship to have a rebound?” Alfred deadpans.

“Oh, fuck off with your technicalities, Alfred, you know what I mean. You’re not over Edward, so your relationship with Jamie is pretty much doomed to blow up in your face and end up hurting you both.” Mina strides towards him as she speaks, causing him to back away.

“You’re wrong.”

“Alfred, I know you’re hurting and that sucks, and I feel for you, I do, but you cannot drag anyone else into this mess, okay? This is between you and Edward, you two need to figure this shit out between you.” 

“Stop it.”

“I know you think you’re doing what’s right, but I can’t think of a single feasible outcome of this relationship that doesn’t end with all three of you getting hurt! I’m looking out for you, can’t you-“

“STOP IT!” Alfred yells, magic crackling between his fingertips. Mina freezes, stunned into silence.

She stares at him for a few moments without speaking, the silence lasting long enough that Florence cracks open the bedroom door to check on them.

“We’re okay, Flo,” Mina says, her voice quiet, and she looks so _small_ in comparison to Alfred that Florence doesn’t want to leave her alone in there. But this isn’t her fight, she knows that, so she closes the door behind her again. 

“I’m sorry, Mina,” Alfred says eventually, breaking the silence which seems to have lasted for hours between them. His entire body seems to crumple, the anger seeping out of him and giving way to bitter sadness. “I didn’t mean to yell at you. I know being pissed off is no excuse for that.”

“I’m sorry, too. I shouldn’t have tried to get involved. It wasn’t my place to do that,” Mina says. “I’m just so worried about you, Alfred. You’re like a brother to me, and seeing you hurting like this…” she pauses and takes a deep breath. “But that’s no excuse either.” She sniffs a little, wiping away a single tear that’s fallen down her cheek.

“No, you’re right, I’ve been a total idiot about all of this. But I really do like him, Mina. I just… I feel like this could be a step in the right direction.”

Mina bites her lip. She doesn’t comment on it though. She sighs, before cracking a smile and opening up her arms. “Come here, you big idiot.”

Alfred crosses the room in three strides, collapsing into her completely. He hates fighting with Mina, hates upsetting her and making her cry, hates how worried he makes her. He’ll do better, he promises himself, as he takes in the familiar smell of her perfume – light and floral – and the softness of her robe. 

It’s at that point that he remembers she’s probably wearing very little under said robe, and that it’s high time he sent her back into the bedroom where her oh-so-patient girlfriend was waiting for her. 

“Are we good?” He mumbles as he pulls away to hold her at arms-length.

Mina laughs. “Yeah, Al, we’re good.” 

“Okay,” He says, a grin lighting up his face. “Okay, good. Now get back in there, and show your girlfriend a good time!” Alfred shoves Mina in the direction of her bedroom with a playful smirk.

Mina blushes and starts to stammer, but before she can reply, Florence storms out – almost fully dressed – to grab Mina by the arm and pull her back into the bedroom, yelling a thanks over her shoulder.  
  
“I’ll give you two some privacy!” Alfred calls after them, and laughs quietly to himself as the door slams behind them. There are muffled moans coming from the bedroom before he’s even managed to slip his shoes on and grab his keys. 

He’s happy for them, he tells himself. He’s happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! i hope you liked this, it's drama city right now! let me know what you thought of the new character and this chapter in general, i'm just dying to hear your thoughts!! 
> 
> thank you again for reading my random ass au, i hope you liked this chapter <3
> 
> (also i didn't proofread this because it's so long and im tired so if there are any mistakes then i'd really appreciate if you let me know! im going to have a glance back over it in the morning)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> god i went back and forth on this chapter so much, i've had some issues with pace etc, but i hope this is okay! the drama really gets going next chapter, don't you worry!
> 
> i hope you like this chapter!!

Edward is pissed. Mostly at Florence and Mina, who finally admitted to him that his ‘blind date’ was a set up, but also at himself. If he had asked Alfred out in some kind of timely fashion, maybe it would have been him in that restaurant, sat opposite Alfred and not awkwardly squeezed onto his table, third-wheeling on a date with a guy who is so ridiculously attractive and kind and perfect that it really isn’t fair. 

Florence makes an effort to be extra nice to him, baking orange and poppy-seed loaf every day just because she knows it’s his favourite, and adding cool latte art on his coffee. Combined with her puppy dog eyes staring at him from across the shop, it’s a miracle he lasts two days.

Unfortunately, it seems their plan failed. Alfred has another date with Jamie in a few days, and, now that the secret is out, Alfred seems to be texting him constantly.

It’s strange how little has really changed between them, even though it feels like somehow everything has changed. It’s like they’re trying to keep up a façade of the way things were before. They still eat lunch together every day, and they still go to the cinema to watch crappy movies, and they still binge watch Netflix shows together when Florence and Mina go out on dates, and Edward still comes in for palm readings far more often than he should. The way their hands touch in that dark room still sends shivers down his spine.

Thankfully, their lunches are still a Jamie free time. Alfred seems almost embarrassed to talk to Edward about him. Edward tries really hard not to read into that too much. It was one thing to pine after Alfred while he was single, but pining after a man in a relationship isn’t something Edward can bear to do to himself.

 

* * *

 

“Okay, okay, where’s the craziest place you’ve ever had sex?” It’s late, almost midnight, but Mina is staying over at Florence’s, so Alfred and Jamie are sitting on the couch and sharing a bottle of wine, having just arrived home from their first date without interference from his friends. Charlie has settled herself in Jamie’s lap quite comfortably, making Alfred smile just a little.

“You trying to suss out your options, Alfred?” Jamie smirks at him, before putting on a mock-thoughtful expression. “I would have to say… the stockroom at my first job. I worked at this bookshop-“ 

“Another bookshop! I can’t believe I expected anything else from you”

“-for like two years when I was in secondary school, and one day me and my girlfriend snuck out to the backroom.” Jamie hesitates for a moment.

“Your girlfriend?” Alfred repeats. He realises immediately how that must sound, especially when he sees Jamie’s face fall.

“Yeah, I, uh, I’m bi. I guess it’s about time I mentioned it. I, uh, look, I really like you and I hope that doesn’t-“

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Alfred cuts him off, reaching over to place a hand on Jamie’s arm. “I don’t care that you’re bi, it doesn’t bother me. I know some people are dicks about that kind of thing, you have no idea how many times Mina’s come home from crap dates in tears because guys just wanted threesomes and girls thought she was faking it.”

“God, people are such assholes,” Jamie says. Alfred can see his face starting to light up again. 

“I guess what I mean is that I still really, really like you, Jamie.” Alfred smiles at him. Why does it feel like his heart is tightening up in his chest?

“Well that’s good, because I really, really like you too, Alfred.” Jamie leans forward a little, setting his glass on the coffee table. Alfred mirrors him, before leaning in just a little more. Eventually, it’s Jamie who closes the distance between them, kissing Alfred gently, just enough that Alfred can taste the wine on his lips.

Why does it feel like a betrayal?

 

* * *

 

Mina and Florence call a group meeting some three weeks later, the ‘group’ being the two of them, Alfred, and Edward. It’s more of a dinner party, Mina says, as she drags a reluctant Alfred to Florence and Edward’s flat, but it’s _very important_ that all four of them are there.

“Couldn’t I have brought Jamie? Then at least I wouldn’t be third-wheeling you two,” Alfred complains.

“No, because then Edward would be third-wheeling by himself. Now you can third-wheel together.” Mina smiles brightly at him. “And besides, Flo and I have something we want to talk to you about.” Suddenly she’s avoiding his gaze now, staring at the carpet as they walk down the hallway.

“If this is about me and Edward-“

“It’s not, Alfred, trust me, our lives don’t centre around who you do and don’t fuck.”

Alfred brings a hand to his chest, as though pained by the notion. “You mean you and Florence _don’t_ spend all your waking hours discussing new ways to mess with my love life?” His smile is playful, and Mina knocks into his side, causing to stumble to the side.

Alfred laughs at her attempt at a grumpy expression, before they come to a halt at the door, which is opened by none other than Edward Drummond hardly two seconds after Mina knocks. Of course, Charlie, who had trotted along at Alfred’s side on the way to the flat, reacts immediately, rubbing up against Edward’s legs with a familiarity she hasn’t quite shown to Jamie yet.

Alfred tries not to think about that too much. 

Mina pushes past the two of them to fins her girlfriend, who is apparently just finishing up in the kitchen. She shoots Alfred a look over her shoulder that seems to say _play nice_. As if he’s capable of anything else when it comes to Edward.

“So, any idea what this whole big thing is about?” Edward asks as he closes the door behind Alfred.

“Not a clue,” he replies, as he tugs off his jacket, looking around for somewhere to put it for a moment until he spots the hook by the door. He’s not been to Edward’s apartment before, oddly enough. They always met up at his place, so he’s a little taken aback by the surroundings.

Edward’s apartment is a messy kind of organised, with stacks of papers and files littering a desk which Alfred assumes is more his than Florence’s, and rugs covering hardwood floors, and one large sofa covered in blankets and cushions, and hardly a single empty space on the walls, which are covered in posters and photographs and tapestries and framed artwork. Alfred wants to wander around and stare at every single inch of the walls, as though it holds some key to Edward’s past, which has been kept mysteriously under wraps.

Alfred can only see so much from his palm – he knows Edward left his coven, but he doesn’t know why; he knows Edward had a good childhood, but he’s not in touch with his family anymore, and Alfred can’t see why that happened either. Edward is quite the enigma.

Before Alfred can really take in the extent of the photographs on the walls, Mina calls him over to the table, which seems to be the centrepiece of the apartment, where she and Florence have already taken a seat.

Once they’re settled and the food has been dished out – some kind of creamy pasta dish that smells _delicious_ – and the wine has been poured, the table settles into a slightly uncomfortable silence, as Edward and Alfred wait patiently for whatever it is Mina and Florence have to say to them so urgently.

Mina gives Florence a nervous look, before eventually piping up. “Okay, may as well get this over with. Florence and I have been talking about this for a week or so, and we’ve decided we’d like to move in together.”

“What?” Alfred asks. It feels a little like a punch in the gut, if he’s being honest.

“You guys, I’m so happy for you!” Edward enthuses. There’s something behind his words though, something Alfred can’t quite put his finger on, but it almost feels like Edward is feeling that same kick of doubt that he is.

“That’s so great!” Alfred adds, not wanting to sound unsupportive.

“We know it’s a big change,” Florence turns to smile at Mina, “but we’ve thought this through, and we figured that the easiest way to do it would be if Mina moved in here, and Edward moved in with Alfred. It might save the hassle of finding new apartments.”

Alfred freezes involuntarily for a second, but he tries not to let it show on his face. “That definitely sounds like a good option, yeah.” God, he hopes that doesn’t sound as forced as it feels. It’s just that the idea of living with Edward when he’s still working on getting over those feelings for him doesn’t sound like a smart choice. 

“I think it sounds great!” Edward says, reaching over to grab Florence’s hand, squeezing it with a warm smile. “This is wonderful, you guys.”

“You don’t think it’s too fast?” Something in the tone of her voice tells Alfred that her question isn’t stemming from her own doubt, but rather to offer an escape route to Edward, who she’s watching with cool intensity. 

“Too fast?” Edward snorts. “You guys spent like a million years pining over each other, it’s about damn time.”

Florence cracks a smile again, taking Mina’s hand in hers. The two of them look so happy, staring at each other with such tenderness that it makes Alfred long for that kind of love.

“Okay then, now that that’s sorted, why don’t we all start eating?” Mina says, already picking up her fork with the hand Florence isn’t holding. Alfred is interested to see how she’ll cope eating one-handed. “We can work out the fine details later, but right now I’m _starving_.”

 

* * *

 

Moving day rolls around a lot quicker than Alfred really expected.

If he’s being honest, it hadn’t really felt like it was actually going to happen. He’d talked about it of course, and they’d made plans for switching Mina’s stuff with Edward’s, but it had always seemed vaguely abstract to him. And yet, here he is, helping Mina pack the last of her belongings into cardboard boxes. The apartment seems empty without her numerous potted plants scattered all over the place, or her makeup and face creams covering her side of the bathroom counter.

He’s grown used to the apartment smelling like various herbs, and he’s grown used to not being totally sure whether that moisturiser is his or hers, and he’s grown used to hearing her music playing through the thin walls of their flat. He knows he’ll still have a roommate, but things are bound to be different.

It’s not like he can go to Edward when he’s confused about his emotions.

“Are you sure you’re going to be okay, Al?” Mina asks, as they pack the last of her potted plants into a box.

Truth be told, Alfred isn’t sure he will be. They’ve been living together since they were 18, and now, 6 years down the line, he can hardly remember life before he shared this apartment with Mina. But he can’t tell her that. Because he’s happy for her, he is.

“I’ll be fine, Mina, come on. I’m a grown man who can almost cook for himself without burning down the building.”

“Do you remember that time you tried to make me a birthday cake?” Mina smiles, the nostalgia finally hitting them.

“There wasn’t even magic involved and I still managed to fuck it up,” Alfred muses. 

“At least you know now that the eggshells don’t go in the cake batter.” Mina nudges him with a grin.

“What about that time I turned all of your plants into mice?” Alfred grins. “I bet you’re glad to be shot of me after all that.”

“Never in a million years, Paget. I’m going to miss you and your magical disasters.”

“Hey, don’t start crying on me, or I’ll start crying too.” Alfred laughs just a little.

Mina wipes her eyes. “God, you’re right, this is stupid, I’m literally going 30 seconds down the road, and I’ll still see you in the shop every day.”

“And you’ll come over for dinner too sometimes? And movie night, too, every Thursday, just like before?”

“Of course! You can’t get rid of me that easily!” Mina shoves him.

“Okay good. Good.” Alfred smiles at her for a moment. “Okay, now get your shit over to your girlfriend’s place.”

Mina laughs, before picking up her last box and setting it in the pile with the others. She recites a quick incantation over the boxes, condensing them all into one, easily portable box that she can carry down the street by hand. She tried to teach Alfred that spell, but after he made the boxes erupt for the third time she decided it was easier to do it herself.

With one last goodbye, she glides out the door, leaving him alone in his far-too-empty apartment.

There are still marks on the windowsills where her sage plants had sat for years on end. There’s still a faint whiff of incense from her room. There are empty spaces in the fridge where she kept almond milk and tofu and all that healthy junk she liked to eat.

He supposes he might fill those in time. Perhaps Edward’s stuff will take their place.

 

* * *

 

 

“Have you packed everything? Or at least the important stuff?”

“Yes, Flo, everything’s packed.” Edward smiles as Florence moves brusquely around the room, looking for things he’s missed. She doesn’t look impressed with his answer.

“All your stuff from the bathroom drawers?”

“We both know none of the stuff in those drawers is mine.”

“The things from under your bed?” 

“Nothing left except the dust bunnies.”

“Stuff from the kitchen?”

“Alfred has kitchen supplies at his place. Besides, none of the stuff in there is _mine_ , it’s all _ours_ , and I’m happy for you to have it, Flo.”

“Good, okay, that’s good.” Florence nods, before proceeding to check everywhere she just mentioned, _just in case_.

“Flo, I told you, I don’t need any of the stuff from the kitchen-“

“Aha!” Florence turns to him with a triumphant grin, holding an apple cutter he had, admittedly, brought with him from home. “This is yours. I haven’t used this even once, so there’s no point in me keeping your apple cutter. Plus, odds are Alfred won’t have one, and god forbid you ever cut an apple using a _knife_.”

Edward shrugs as Florence reopens one of his boxes to tuck the apple cutter inside. “It’s just easier.” Florence rolls her eyes at him as she tucks the flaps of the box back into place. “Happy now?”

Florence glances around the apartment. “You’re _sure_ you’ve got everything?”

Edward laughs at her. “Yes, I’m sure, Flo. Don’t worry, there won’t be a single trace of me left in the apartment once I leave.”

Usually Florence would have taken that bait and run with it, teasing Edward mercilessly about his messy habits, but today she stays quiet.

“Flo, you know I’m only down the road, right?” Edward says tentatively. This wasn’t his choice, he knows, but he also knows how Florence feels about being abandoned. “And I’ll still come into the café every day and take up space.”

Florence nods, biting her lip. “You promise?”

“Yeah, I promise, Flo. You’re not going to get rid of me that easily.”  Edward nudges her playfully, and just like that she’s back, prodding his side with a grin.

“God, at least I won’t have to put up with your stinky socks _all over the apartment_ anymore. That’s Alfred’s problem now.”

Something strange settles in Edward’s gut at the reminder that he’ll be living with Alfred from now on. He tries to brush it aside, but he’s not quick enough to hide it from Florence.

“You’re still okay with this, right? I mean, I know you had a thing for Alfred?” She rests her hand on his arm, and he feels her familiar, Harlie, slide off her wrist to wrap around his. It’s comforting, in a way. Dottie, who’s perched on his shoulder, steps down his arm slowly to nudge Harlie gently by way of greeting.

“I’ll be fine,” Edward says, painting on a smile. Florence doesn’t look convinced, but she drops the subject.

_I’ll be fine_ , he repeats again to himself when he leaves the apartment, condensed box in hand, heading over to his new home.

 

* * *

 

Edward settles in quickly. He’s finding things a little weird without Florence around – he misses her cooking more than anything else. Alfred seems to be well versed in which places to go to for good, but cheap, take-away food. Apparently Mina wasn’t that much of a chef either, for all her wisdom with potions. 

How those two survived together for six years is beyond him.

Living with Alfred is good, though, if a little tough on his emotions. Because, the thing is, Alfred looks absolutely gorgeous in the mornings when he’s just woken up and his hair is messy and his eyes are only half open and he can’t do much more than grunt and mumble as he fumbles for the coffee pot. He wears these ridiculous pyjama bottoms with cats on them, and fluffy socks, and he just looks so _soft_ that Edward wants to bundle him up in a blanket and kiss him.

Unfortunately, Alfred’s boyfriend is a regular visitor.

The first time Jamie stays the night, Edward thinks it might be possible to hear his heart breaking for miles around. They’re quiet enough, which surprises him a little. He supposes he’d always figured Alfred would be pretty loud.

 Edward tries really hard not to think about it. Instead, he just tries to get by day to day without melting into a puddle every time they bump into each other on the way to the bathroom in the morning, or every time Alfred makes two cups of coffee instead of one, or every time Alfred pours out two bowls of cereal _just because_.

He’s not doing so well.

Alfred, on the other hand, has gotten very good at just _not looking_ when it comes to Edward.

Messy curls and sleepy eyes? Well, his coffee grounds sure do look interesting all of a sudden, maybe divining prophecies from them isn’t such a myth after all.

Fresh out of the shower and clad only in a towel? Man, he really needs to look at re-grouting the tile in the bathroom before the floor falls apart.

Wearing Alfred’s sweatshirt because they got mixed up in the wash? Huh, he’s never noticed that crack in the ceiling before, maybe he should get that looked at.

It’s easier to pretend he’s not still horrifically in love with Edward that way, and easier to pretend he’s actually falling in love with his boyfriend. Because Jamie is perfect, he really is. He volunteers at an animal shelter in his spare time, and he can quote all of Alfred’s favourite authors with perfect ease, and he doesn’t seem to have freaked out about the witch thing yet, even when he walked in on Mina mid-way through brewing a potion, complete with a bubbling cauldron and smoke and an incantation.  
  
If that hasn’t put him off yet, Alfred isn’t sure what will.

Even Charlie is warming to Jamie, getting more comfortable with sniffing at his shoes when he arrives, and maybe curling up in his lap from time to time when they sit on the sofa to watch a movie, or to chat, or to drink wine, or whatever.

When they start sleeping together, Alfred has to admit to himself that it’s good, but it’s lacking that spark that seems to fizzle between him and Edward, even when they’re not even touching. Plus, Edward makes it pretty clear that he’s not keen on Jamie staying the night, at least not when he’s around.

God, why does Alfred find that so reassuring?

The winter solstice comes and goes, and they usher in the new year, and, with no sign of his pining for Edward letting up, Alfred realises what he supposes Mina had been trying to tell him all along. Maybe him and Edward weren’t ever going to happen, but they definitely wouldn’t with Jamie around, and, what’s more, Jamie deserves far better than being some rebound for a stupid boy who’s too infatuated with his roommate to fall in love with the perfect man right in front of him.

By the spring equinox, he’s made up his mind. If he’s so dead set on keeping the promise he made himself at Samhain, this is most definitely not the way to approach the matter. He knows what he ought to do. It’s more just a question of doing it.

 

* * *

 

Alfred’s break up with Jamie feels like an odd way to welcome the spring equinox. He had celebrated with his coven, joined by Edward and Florence, who seem to have become honorary members, and, yet, at a time of rebirth, he feels more as though he is regressing when he finds Jamie a week or so later to put an end to things. 

Alfred is a little vague on details. It would be cruel, he thinks, to admit to Jamie that he was little more than a rebound from a relationship that never even got off the ground. It’s better to let him down easy with a polite “this isn’t working out”, Alfred thinks, though there’s a small part of him that knows he’s avoiding admitting his feelings out loud by not mentioning them at all.

Jamie doesn’t seem entirely taken in with Alfred’s limp excuse, but he accepts it nonetheless, offering Alfred a sad smile, and admitting that he’ll miss him, before making himself scarce. And that’s that.

It doesn’t really feel like Alfred has just ended a relationship that lasted a little under four months. It feels like he’s called off a casual, two-week fling. He supposes that’s all the proof he really needs that this is the right decision. 

Charlie mopes around the apartment for a few days, and Alfred has to admit that he misses Jamie too, but, at the end of the day, they weren’t destined to last forever. Alfred may not be great at reading his own palm, but he’s read Jamie’s, and, unless Jamie had counted his previous relationships incorrectly, his relationship with Alfred was never destined to be long term.

Or perhaps that was Alfred’s lack of commitment. The future can change, he knows that. He wonders if maybe he could change, if he could become better for Jamie.

And then Edward walks into the kitchen with messy curls and sleepy eyes and Alfred forgets how to breathe, and he remembers why he broke up with Jamie.

There’s a small part of him that wonders if switching apartments was just another one of Mina and Florence’s plans to get him and Edward together, but he’s fairly sure Mina knows not to cross that line anymore. And besides, this is a pretty big commitment to getting him and Edward together – he’s not sure she’d go to this effort to make that happen. 

It’s strange though, the peculiar moments of tenderness which seem to have found their way into his daily life. It’s the little things, like sitting on the sofa with his head on Edward’s lap, feeling Edward run his fingers through his hair absent-mindedly, or brushing their teeth side by side in the bathroom, or Edward tickling him ruthlessly until he’s begging for mercy, pinned down under Edward’s weight. He’s so invested in this that it hurts.

 

* * *

 

When Alfred announces his break up with Jamie, Edward tries really hard not to be too happy about it. Alfred doesn’t need someone who’s going to start hitting on him immediately after he breaks up with his boyfriend, he needs someone who will help him sort the books and sweatshirts and toiletries that belong to Jamie that had found their way into their apartment. So that’s what he does.

Still, he can’t help himself sometimes when it comes to Alfred.

Something about the proximity of their new living arrangement is bringing them closer in more ways than one – the slight distance that had been placed between them when Alfred was dating Jamie seems to be melting away, drawing them closer and closer together, but never close enough. Never quite touching

It’s Zeno’s paradox, dooming the two of them to never truly meet, as they circle each other endlessly, with always halfway to go before they finally touch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> quick note on zeno's paradox: the one im referring to in particular here is the idea of achilles and the tortoise. essentially, he reasons that if the tortoise is given a headstart in a race, he might get a hundred meters before achilles starts, and then achilles will run to catch up with him, but by the time he has reached the place where the tortoise is, it will have moved further. by the time he reaches it again, it will have moved further still and so on. i've kind of blended it a little with his dichotomy paradox, wherein he reasons that before you can get anywhere you just reach a halfway point, and that there must therefore always be another halfway point before you can get there. idk, it's a load of bs really but it sure is interesting to play with.
> 
> i stole the idea of zeno's paradox from amelie (the musical adaptation has a whole song with this reference called 'halfway' which i would recommend listening too because it explains the gist of the paradox i'm trying to capture here and also pippa soo's voice is so gorgeous, just wait until she starts singing wow). i just really felt like it fitted quite nicely. 
> 
> i hoped you liked this, thank you so so so much for reading! 
> 
> comments and kudos give me life and keep me writing!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im finally back with a new chapter! 
> 
> just a quick note: 'litha' is another sabbat, which takes place on the summer solstice (late june typically, in case you wanted to keep track of the timeline im running). im 100% using the sabbats to mark progress through the year, so keep an eye on those. my research generally suggests that the summer solstice is all about getting in touch with nature, hence their impromptu trip in this chapter. 
> 
> also: alfred is even dumber than usual in this chapter. don't say i didn't warn you.
> 
> enjoy the chapter!

Midsummer has always been a time for reconnecting with nature, as far as Alfred’s coven is concerned at least, which is why, each year, the whole group packs up and goes camping in the middle of nowhere to celebrate Litha. It’s the first time Edward and Florence have ever been invited to such an occasion, since most of the other Sabbats are celebrated from the comfort of Victoria’s home, or somewhere else close at hand. It’s safe to say that they aren’t quite sure what to expect.

As it turns out, the trip is relatively relaxed. After a somewhat hellish journey that involved squeezing five people, their bags, and their tents into each of the three cars they’d ended up bringing (Alfred can still feel exactly where his body had pressed against Edward’s for the whole journey), they’d arrived at Victoria’s location of choice – a big, empty field with a forest on one side and an enormous hill on the other, because apparently there’s also due to be a meteor shower tonight and this is the best place to see it.

Tents are pitched in a circle around benches and tables, and a large bonfire is built right in the middle, a safe distance from the tents, ready for the evening.

Alfred tries not to think about the fact that he’ll be sharing a tent with Edward for the night. He really tries. But, _god_ , Edward is so distracting. All he has to do is exist somewhere in Alfred’s vicinity and that’s it. Alfred’s heart starts pounding, he loses track of whatever conversation he’s having, and he can’t stop thinking about Edward’s lips.

Edward really isn’t faring any better. Most of the solstice is a bit of a blur, really, with Alfred so close to him, sitting next to him as they eat at rickety pop-up tables with the rest of the group as the sun begins to set, with Charlie rubbing up against his legs and Dottie making her way up Alfred’s arm. It’s weirdly intimate considering they’re eating pot-noodles surrounded by a large group of other people. Do all friends sit like this? Perhaps not.

Later, around the fire, the flames cast sharp shadows over Alfred’s face as he laughs and sings campfire songs out of tune, and his hair is like a fire in itself, and Edward can hardly bear to tear his eyes away. He lets three marshmallows burn to a crisp because he’s too distracted by Alfred. He doesn’t know how to explain that to the rest of the group, but surely they must understand. They have eyes too, don’t they?

When the sun has set completely, blankets are laid out some distance from the fire so they can watch the meteor shower. Edward is lying next to Alfred, their hands sitting just inches away from each other, barely a few centimetres from touching.

“Okay, and up there is Andromeda.” Alfred points at the sky, tracing the constellation. “D’you know the story?” He turns his head to look over at Edward, who shakes his head. “She was chained to a rock and left to die to repent for her own mother’s hubris. Then along came Perseus, who swept her away from the sea monster trying to kill her, and married her for good measure.”

“Pretty romantic,” Edward mumbles.

“I think the sea monster might have killed the mood a little,” Alfred replies with a wry smile.

“You don’t want to get rescued by some brave hero?” Edward rolls onto his side. Alfred does the same, and his breath hitches a little, seeing the shadows the moonlight casts on his face, and the way his curls have fallen loose from their usual place.

“I think we all want to be rescued,” Alfred whispers. “The hero doesn’t have to be brave, or perfect, he just needs to love me, in spite of everything.”

Edward wants so badly to reach out to him, kiss him, hold him. His eyes flicker down to Alfred’s lips, just for a moment. He settles for resting a hand on Alfred’s arm.  “You’ll find him. I swear, you will.”

There’s a pause, pregnant with everything left unsaid between them. “Why did you leave your coven, Edward?” 

Edward swallows, rolling back a little to look up at the stars again, but leaving his arm outstretched in the small gap between them. “It’s, uh, it’s complicated.”

“You don’t have to talk about it.” 

“But I want to.” Edward doesn’t look over, but he sees Alfred shift towards him just slightly, still leaning on his side, instead of looking up at the stars. “I want to talk about it with you.”

“Okay.” Alfred’s voice is quiet, unthreatening.

“The long and short of it is that Florence and I didn’t fit in. There were various reasons, most of them centring around the fact that we’re gay, and the rest centring around our willingness to interact with the human world beyond the coven, but in the end it was a slow, excommunication kind of process. We stopped being asked along to the smaller rituals first, or any group occasions like weddings and birthdays, and then eventually it got to the point where we weren’t welcome at Sabbats anymore.

“After we spent our first Samhain alone, we realised that this wasn’t what covens are about, you know? It’s supposed to be your chosen family, but instead it was this strict class system, and anyone who didn’t fit the mould was cast aside. So we just… left. Packed up in the middle of the night without so much as a note 

“We’d heard through the grapevine that this was a nice area, with nice people, and a good witch community, so we decided to settle here. I suppose it’s nice and far from Scotland, too, which is always a perk.” Edward refuses to look over at Alfred, because he knows if he does he’ll shatter, but he can feel Alfred’s eyes absolutely fixed on him as he talks.

“And then we found you, and Mina, and your coven, and you just… welcomed us with open arms, and you didn’t care that we were different, because you were different too, and you gave us everything we’d been looking for, and I-“ Edward’s throat is thick with tears now, choking off his words slightly. Determined to finish, he turns to Alfred- “I will never know how to thank you for that.”

“Oh, Edward,” Alfred’s heart feels as though it’s breaking in his chest as he sits up and pulls Edward close to him, letting him cry into his shoulder. Alfred runs a hand through Edward’s hair, and just holds him in his arms until his tears stop his breathing evens out again.

Alfred presses a tentative kiss to the top of Edward’s head, and feels Edward react to the touch almost immediately, sitting up straight so that his eyes are level with Alfred’s. Is Alfred going crazy or did Edward’s eyes just flicker down to his lips. God, Edward’s lips are all he can think about right now, they’re so close, maybe if he just leaned in a little closer- NO!

Alfred leans back immediately. He can’t kiss Edward. Edward is his friend, his _roommate_ , he can’t ruin things between them because of this ridiculous infatuation he’s developed. He’s supposed to be moving past his feelings for Edward, and not falling deeper into them

As for the supposed signs he’s been picking up, he’s sure he’s just reading into things too much. He’s not in a fucking romance novel. This is real life, and real life doesn’t just work out like that. And besides, if Edward is looking to join the coven, there’s no way he’d want to mess that up by having a fleeting relationship with Alfred that only lasted as long as it took for him to realise that Alfred is so far below his league that they never should have even met.

Edward looks mildly stunned, and maybe even a little bit hurt by Alfred suddenly drawing back, but before he can speak, Alfred looks over at the sky behind them and sees his perfect excuse. “The, uh, the meteor shower is starting,” he says, pointing out the small flashes of light appearing across the night sky.

“Oh,” Edward replies, somewhat flatly. “Right.” 

The two of them lie back down on the blanket, only this time Alfred makes sure to place a little extra distance between them. They spend the rest of the night in relative silence, even when they head back to the tent as the sun begins to rise, marking the end of the Sabbat. 

Alfred tries to sleep, he really does, but with Edward beside him, mere inches away, it feels all but impossible. It just makes him yearn to roll into Edward’s arms, even though he knows he can’t, knows he shouldn’t.

So he goes outside instead, and sits on the dew-damp grass, a little way from the tents, and he watches the sky shift from darkness to soft pink to cool blue. Not long after he settles into place, he hears a rustling from behind, and spots Harriet, who is making her way towards him, with her familiar, a sleek black cat, trailing behind her.

Charlie shifts where she’s sitting in Alfred’s lap as Harriet sits down beside Alfred with a small sigh. “Can’t sleep either?”

Alfred shrugs. “I don’t know why I thought sharing a tent with Edward was ever going to be a good idea.”

“Because the rest of the group is made up of couples?” Harriet nudges him.

“Wha- no, that can’t be right.” Alfred shakes his head. And then he counts them off on his fingers. Victoria and Albert, Harriet and Ernst, Nancy and Charles, Emma and her husband, and now Mina and Florence. “Oh god, I never thought I’d be the last person in this coven to left single.”

“Well, you’re not quite the last, or have you forgotten about the gorgeous young man sleeping in your tent?” Harriet grins. 

“Right.”

“I saw you two getting pretty cosy during the meteor shower. Does that have anything to do with why you’re out here and not in there?”

“Maybe.” Alfred avoids her eye, staring straight ahead. 

“Alfred?”

“I fucked up. I almost kissed him, and now he _knows_ , Harriet, he’s going to think I’m pathetic or something. I mean, what if he realises that he’s the reason I broke up with Jamie. Side note: why the fuck did I break up with Jamie? Okay, he was gorgeous, and funny, and he was _actually into me_.”

“You didn’t love him though, Alfred. You know that.”

“Okay, but I could have learned to. Maybe I just need some space from all this, you know, from Edward and his stupid curly hair and his eyes and his laugh and just… his everything. Like, maybe if I take a step back.”

“Alfred, you live together, how is that ever going to work?” Harriet looks more than a little concerned. 

“I don’t know, I mean I’ll just read in my bedroom instead of sitting on the sofa with him, and I’ll stop getting lunch with him every fucking day, and I’ll stop just giving him palm readings on a whim, you know?”

“I don’t know, this sounds like a recipe for disaster, not healing.”

“Harriet, I can’t keep living like this,. I need to move on, okay, he isn’t interested.”

Harriet wants to scream, because anyone with eyes can see just how interested Edward is, but it’s not her business to share that. Mina and Florence had explained quite clearly just how much Alfred _didn’t_ want them to get involved.

“And besides,” Alfred continues, “I’m not going to cut him out entirely. I’m just stepping back for a while. It’s for the best.”

Harriet bites her tongue and nods instead. There’s no dissuading Alfred once he decides on a course of action, no matter how idiotic it is. She can only be there to help manage the inevitable fallout of his decision.

“It’s for the best.” Alfred can’t really tell if he’s trying to convince Harriet or himself.

 

* * *

 

True to his word, Alfred sets about putting distance between him and Edward with a fervour that startles everyone around him. He’s around so infrequently that Edward only really sees him occasionally when they cross paths in the apartment, or when Florence and Mina invite them both over.

Alfred has taken to getting up early to open up shop, which means he’s usually awake, showered, dressed, and out of the door before Edward has even opened his eyes. He cancels their lunch plans for a variety of reasons until eating alone is simply what Edward expects. When Alfred is actually in their apartment, he spends his time in his bedroom instead of sitting on the sofa, or in the kitchen, but he seems to spend most of his time elsewhere, to the point where Edward thinks the apartment has become little more than a place where he sleeps.

“He looks so lost, Mina, you should see him,” Florence says as she climbs into bed beside her girlfriend, who immediately closes her book, putting it on the bedside table. “He just mopes around the café all day long, and every single lunchtime he stares at the door like he expects Alfred to appear even though we all know Alfred has cancelled every single day since the solstice. He’s like a kicked puppy.”

“I don’t know why Alfred is doing this,” Mina says, as Florence rests her head on Mina’s shoulder with a sigh. “He’s being ridiculous, they both are. I mean, they were so close at the solstice…”

“Something must have happened. I mean, you don’t just change like that overnight.”

“Harriet told me he said something about an almost kiss. Like, he was horrified that Edward might have found out, so he decided this was the best solution.”

Florence rolls her eyes. “Has he always been this stupid?”

Mina nods. “Stubborn too. He’ll tire himself out eventually, though. It won’t be long before he realises how much he misses Edward.”

“Are you sure? Because if things keep going at this rate they’ll be strangers again by Samhain.”

“I’m sure.” Mina presses a kiss to Florence’s forehead. “You worry too much.” 

“Oh, please, don’t pretend you’re not just as worried as me.” Florence nudges Mina, before turning her head to look up at her with a small smile, her chin resting on Mina’s shoulder. “Were we ever this stupid?” 

“Of course not,” Mina grins, pressing a quick kiss onto Florence’s nose. “We were just taking our time.”

“And I wouldn’t change it for the world.”

“You big sap, you know I never had you pegged as the poetic type until we started dating.” Mina teases, but she’s grinning, and she leans down to kiss Florence before she’s even finished speaking. “I love you.” She whispers against Florence’s lips.

“I love you, too.” Florence whispers back. They’re safe in their little bubble, with their happy ending and their perfect moment. They’re the lucky ones, the exception and not the rule, just like Alfred had said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ....im sorry. 
> 
> thank you so much for reading, as always!! i love hearing what you think of each chapter, thank you so so so much to everyone who comments! it really does mean the world to me <3
> 
> another chapter will be coming soon, with the return of a familiar face, and alfred continuing to be dumb, and florina somehow still being surprised by it.
> 
> oh and also im jumping ahead to another samhain, because who needs to work through a timeline slowly when you can cover a whole year in like three chapters?


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter 8 has arrived! im not 100% sure how i feel about this chapter but i wanted to post it because i've got a manic few days lined up, and also im going on holiday in a week and i'd quite like to finish this fic before i go to prevent a two week gap between chapters!
> 
> the only witch lore i think i need to explain here is initiation rituals: from my research, it varies a lot in different covens and forms or witchcraft. i went for something pretty simple for victoria's coven because i didn't think they'd be up for something crazy but some of the stuff i found suggested far more complicated rituals. in this instance, however, initiation is more of a formality than anything else to mark them joining the coven officially. (im not an expert on witch lore so like... by all means tell me this if is wrong and suggest changes!)
> 
> i think that's it! enjoy the chapter!

Jamie walks back into Alfred’s life maybe a month or so after Alfred starts distancing himself from Edward. Or, rather, Alfred walks back into his, when he decides to make a trip to Jamie’s bookshop for the first time since they broke up. For the books, obviously. 

The thing is, Alfred’s whole distancing idea has been working for him. It’s not that he’s forgotten Edward, but, by spending less time around him, he finds it’s almost like his feelings for Edward have begun to fade just a little. Not entirely, of course, but enough that he feels confident enough to ask Jamie out on a date again. 

And it’s good for him, dating Jamie, because it’s comfortable, and familiar, and _safe_ , and this time Alfred can actually feel himself falling in love with Jamie for real, and maybe things don’t have that same heat that seems to fly between him and Edward, but they’re good. Alfred could love Jamie, one day. Maybe with a little time, he could love him for real.

In fact, things going so well that, when Samhain rolls around again, Alfred decides it might be time to introduce Jamie to the coven. It’s the final test, really. If his coven likes him, then he knows Jamie’s a keeper, and, more importantly, if Jamie doesn’t turn and run in the opposite direction after spending a night with Alfred’s coven then he doubts even the worst of magical mishaps could scare him off. 

Luckily, Jamie doesn’t seem fazed by Victoria’s apparently unending energy, and Ernst and Harriet’s semi-awkward account of their relationship, and Albert talking about witch-human relations, and Nancy casting small glamours to liven up the room while her husband, Charles, adds a potion promoting joy and happiness into the food he’s laid out for them to eat and Emma lights candles and then levitates them so they float like something out of Harry Potter. He also seems to be unfazed by Edward shooting daggers at him from across the room, while Mina and Florence exchange worried looks.

“I thought you said Edward wasn’t in your coven?” Jamie whispers. It’s not malicious, he’s simply curious. 

“He’s not, but we have an open door policy to any witches who might be alone for the Sabbats. It’s pretty hard to spend them alone, so we’ve informally adopted him and Florence. Of course, Florence now has a guaranteed spot thanks to Mina, and everyone loves them both, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we welcomed them officially to the coven pretty soon.” Alfred replies. Jamie nods, as though he’s trying to digest the information Alfred has given him.

“Do you know what happened with his last coven? Like, can you get thrown out or something?”

Alfred stiffens a little, remembering that night under the stars. “I, uh, no, I don’t know.” God, he can hear just how unconvincing he sounds. Luckily, Jamie drops the subject, moving on and asking about their traditions.

Back on safe ground, Alfred shows Jamie how they light candles as tributes to the dead, and points out a small platter of food that has been set aside for the spirits. “These are minor tributes to any spirits crossing between their world and ours tonight. A lot of how we celebrate this centres more around connections, and moving forwards.”

He explains the bonfire, and nervously tells Jamie that he doesn’t have to participate in the circle if he doesn’t want to, but that it would be really cool if he did. Alfred has already discussed it with Victoria, who had confirmed that having someone non-magical in the circle wouldn’t disrupt the ceremony or anything like that, so long as he did what he was told.

Jamie smiles, and reaches up a hand to touch Alfred’s cheek gently, and says he would _love_ to be a part of the circle. Alfred doesn’t notice Edward’s eyes burning into the back of his head, filling with tears just a little before he disappears to some other part of the house, but Jamie does. 

When the time comes for the bonfire, Alfred and Jamie sit shoulder to shoulder, with Mina sat beside him with Florence, who is trying to keep an eye on Edward. Edward’s heart hurts just a little (or maybe a lot) at the sight of Alfred, pressed up against Jamie, head thrown back as he laughs that deep belly-aching laugh that Edward remembers all too well. He remembers how, only a year before, that had been him. God, how much had changed since then?

If Edward didn’t love Alfred enough to want him to be happy, regardless of the cause, he would have considered hexing Jamie right then and there. He would’ve considered turning him into a frog, or giving him a sudden nosebleed, or giving him donkey’s ears. But, instead, all he can do is sit there with his heart breaking as Alfred leans into Jamie’s chest while Jamie whispers something in his ear that makes him blush.

He recognises the way the flames light up Alfred’s hair so that it looks like it’s on fire, and the way his eyes smoulder with the intensity of the fire, and the way the fire casts sharp shadows across his face that make him look almost inhuman. He remembers seeing that up close.

It’s almost impossible to bear.

When the circle is complete, their papers burned, their new lives envisioned, Edward finds he doesn’t feel much different. That is, until Victoria stands up with an announcement to make.

“Our circle has grown bigger over this past year, with some new faces,” her eyes land on Jamie, “and some old.” She looks to Edward and Florence with small smiles. “However, I think we can all agree that the time has come to formally welcome Edward and Florence into our ranks, before they get bored and find another coven to join instead.”

A small chuckle goes around the circle, as Florence and Edward stare at Victoria, somewhat dumbstruck. Mina squeezes Florence’s hand, and Alfred leans forward so he can offer Edward a reassuring smile. 

“If the both of you are willing, we can proceed with the initiation tonight.” Victoria smiles at them. “I have made preparations, and I am sure there will be no objections among the group.” Victoria casts her eye around the circle, looking for anyone who might choose to protest, but everyone smiles welcomingly at Edward and Florence.

The two of them both stammer in agreement, assuring Victoria that they would be more than happy to join. It’s an honour, of course, to be welcomed into a coven without really asking, and they know it.

“Alfred, Mina, would you like to prepare your respective initiates?” Victoria holds out an arm, indicating that the two of them should take Edward and Florence into the house to get them ready.

With a reluctant smile directed towards Jamie, Alfred stands up and goes to meet Edward, the two of them following Mina and Florence into the house in silence. When they arrive, they find two parcels, presumably containing the robes that all coven members are required to wear for their initiation.

Alfred has never been a Guide before, but he remembers when Emma had been his guide when he was initiated into the coven. He remembers how nervous he had been, and how she had calmed him down and assured him that, no matter what happened, he would be welcomed with open arms into the coven, even if he messed up, like he was prone to doing.

“Are you nervous?” Alfred asks eventually, as the two of them walk to one of the bedrooms.

“I’m shitting myself right now.” Edward’s voice is a little shaky. “What exactly does an initiation ritual entail for you guys?”

“Not all that much, don’t worry. Victoria will ask you a few questions, essentially about pledging your loyalty to the coven and to the craft. It’s pretty easy, all you have to say is ‘I do’, and you’re all set.” 

“And then?” 

Alfred bites back a laugh at Edward’s intent stare. 

“She’ll offer you a drink from a chalice – she says it’s the blood of the ancestors but it’s just some really fancy red wine, I swear. Take a sip, then swear the oath with her. She’ll prompt you on that, don’t worry.” It’s shockingly easy to fall back into conversation with him.

“And after that?”

“Nothing. That’s it, that’s all there is to it. She’ll declare you a part of the coven, and then we’ll all get sloshed by way of celebration. Vicky will probably want to tattoo you at some point, but, like I said, that’s optional and non-urgent.” Alfred places a reassuring hand on Edward’s shoulder. “You’ll be fine. You’ve got this, okay? Besides, we wouldn’t be doing this if everyone didn’t love you to pieces.” 

Edward nods. He can do this.

It’s strange, that’s the most Alfred has said to him in weeks, but it doesn’t seem strained. It’s like he just turned on a tap that had been sitting in the off position for a while. Edward’s heart squeezes as he wonders if that means Alfred has forgiven him for whatever it is that drove a wedge between them – that almost kiss, maybe? – or if things will just return to the way they were before once this evening is over. He can’t tell which option would hurt more.

They lapse into silence again as Edward changes quickly into the robe provided for him while Alfred averts his eyes. Until, at least, Edward realises there’s some kind of tie at the back that he can’t reach.

“Alfred, could you give me a hand?” Edward gestures to the gaping back of the robe as Alfred turns.

“Uh, yeah, of course,” Alfred says, blushing just slightly. He crosses the room and reaches up to tie a neat bow at the back of the robes, which, as it turns out, are something akin to a long, white nightgown. To symbolise purity, Edward supposes. Alfred’s hands ghost over Edward’s skin, his breath just gently touching the back of his neck for a brief moment. He steps back all too soon. “You’re all set!” He’s just a little overly-cheery when he speaks again, as though to compensate for the apparent hollowness of the moment.

As Alfred leads him back in the direction of the garden, Edward has time to look a little more closely at his robes, where he can make out protective runes stitched onto the fabric in white thread. It’s been a long time since he studied runes, so he can’t remember most of them, but he recognises the rune for peace and unity that Alfred, and every other member of the coven, has tattooed on their skin. 

The familiarity of it eases his mind just a little. That, and Charlie, who is trotting along at his side, occasionally nuzzling his ankles.

When they arrive outside, the coven is preparing to cast a circle, around the bonfire with Jamie loitering a few meters away, no longer welcome in the circle for the time being, and Florence and Mina already waiting in the middle of the circle, with their backs to the fire. Alfred guides Edward to his position in front of Victoria, feeling the heat of the fire on his back as he steps back a little from Edward.

The ritual is simple, and over relatively quickly. Both Edward and Florence perform their parts flawlessly, and are met with raucous cheers when they are announced as new members of the coven, and passed around the circle for tight hugs and whispers of congratulations. They also coo over Dottie, who is perched on Edward’s shoulder now, feeling far more confident with Edward’s new family.

Even Jamie comes up to congratulate him, with one arm around Alfred’s shoulder, and a brilliant smile lighting up his face. “I’m happy for you! I don’t know all that much about this witch stuff but this seems like a pretty huge deal, so congrats!” 

God, Edward hates how nice he is, how impossible it is to hate him. “Thanks, that means a lot to me.”

“Hey, is that your familiar?” Jamie asks, nodding at Dottie.

“Uh, yeah, her name is Dottie.” Edward reaches up a hand to scoop her up and hold her out to Jamie a little. 

“Man, can you believe I didn’t even know you guys didn’t all just have cats before I showed up here?” Jamie grins, crouching a little to peer at her with a grin. At least Jamie seems to know, or have been told, not to touch a witch’s familiar without permission, keeping his hands by his side as he watches. 

Dottie, aware of his eyes watching her, immediately shifts from a neutral green to bright red. It doesn’t take a genius to understand what that means, especially when Edward draws his hand back to resettle her on his shoulder. “She’s not that great with new people,” Edward mutters, avoiding Alfred’s eye. They both know full well just how welcoming Dottie can be when she feels like it.

Edward coughs awkwardly, and excuses himself to go and speak to Florence instead. He doesn’t notice the cogs beginning to turn inside Jamie’s head.

 

* * *

 

“Alfred?” Alfred hums in response from where he’s got his head resting on Jamie’s shoulder, watching the fire. “What’s the deal with Edward?”

Alfred stiffens immediately and leans back, a little cautious. “What do you mean?” 

“I mean what’s the story with you guys? ‘Cause I can’t figure out if I should be worried or not.”

“Worried?” Alfred half-squeaks. God, what if Jamie is onto him? What if they’re about to break up?

“I mean, is he your ex or something? Or is he just a friend? Or…” Jamie pauses, biting his lip as though he’s debating whether or not to continue, “or is he something more than that?” he finishes, avoiding Alfred’s eye. 

“You think I might be sleeping with him?” Alfred is a little hurt by that to say the least.

“That’s not what I meant, God, that came out wrong.” Jamie rubs the back of his neck with one hand, not missing the way Charlie has retreated from her position at his feet to sit a little closer to Alfred. “I just… I can’t figure out what’s going on with you guys. I trust you, Alfred, but there clearly is, or at least was, something going on there, and I just need to know if that’s going to have some kind of an impact on us.”

Alfred sighs. Jamie’s right, he deserves to know. “Edward was… an ‘almost’, so to speak. When we first met I fell for him, hook line and sinker, but… I don’t know, nothing ever really happened between us. I don’t think he was ever really into me that way. And I’ve moved on from that now,” Alfred isn’t sure who he’s trying to convince more – Jamie, or himself. “I have, I swear.”

“And last time we dated…”

“I wasn’t over it back then. That’s why I called things off before. I needed some time to regroup, and I have, and things are better now, because I’m with you.” Alfred smiles at Jamie, the dopey, lovesick kind of grin he only reserves for a special few.

“And you’re sure you’re over him? Because I don’t want to get stuck in the middle of this again, okay, getting over you sucked enough the first time around-“ 

“I’m over him, I swear,” Alfred whispers, reaching an arm back around Jamie and resting his head back on his shoulder. For the first time, Alfred feels like it might almost be true.

Jamie nods, accepting Alfred’s answer as the truth, perhaps more because he wants to believe it than because he actually does. His eyes catch Edward’s just for a moment, on the opposite side of the fire, watching the two of them. His expression is pretty transparent, even if he looks away the moment he sees Jamie looking.

No matter what Alfred says, _Edward_ is most certainly not over _him_.

 

* * *

 

“Welcome to the coven,” Mina whispers, later that night, as she presses a kiss onto Florence’s collarbone, where her new tattoo is beginning to heal with a little help from one of Mina’s potions.

Florence scoffs just a little. “Remind me not to let Victoria tattoo me again.”

“She’s not the best at it, I know, but nobody wants to tell her. She’s doing it because she loves us, you know?”

“I know,” she says, and then, after a beat, “I didn’t think it would be that easy to join.” Mina gives her a questioning look “My last coven had this whole big ritual – you were butt naked, and for part of it you had to cut your palm and squeeze blood out over a fire.” Florence looks mildly haunted when she mentions the experience. Harlie tightens a little around her wrist.

“That’s kind of intense, Flo. I’m glad you got out of there.” Mina squeezes Florence’s hand, and Florence’s expression lightens a little as she leans into Mina’s touch.

“Yeah,” Florence smiles dopily, “so am I.”

“Hey, so, uh, now that you’re a part of the family, I guess I was just wondering what your- no, our next steps are?” Mina bites her lip, looking up at Florence from under her lashes.

Florence bites back a smile. “Next steps?”

Mina blushes. “Yeah, I mean, like, is marriage on the table? Or kids? I mean, is that something you’d want?”

“Are you kidding me?” Florence’s face splits into a grin. “What kind of an idiot would I be if I didn’t want all of that?”

“So you do? Want all of that, I mean?” 

Florence rolls her eyes and pulls Mina in for a kiss. “Of course I do. I want a future with you, Mina.” Florence whispers against Mina’s lips, the two of them so close that she can feel Mina’s heart pounding.

“Okay,” Mina breathes. “Okay, good.”

Florence giggles. “I love you, Wilhelmina Coke.” 

“I love you too, Florence Villiers.”

 

* * *

 

“Okay, it says here that you’re handsome,” Alfred presses a kiss onto Jamie’s neck, before sneaking another look at his palm, “and sexy,” another kiss, on his ear this time, “and perfect.” Another kiss, now at the corner of his mouth. “Oh, wait, that’s your boyfriend, sorry.” Alfred grins, and Jamie rolls his eyes before pulling Alfred in for a real kiss.

They’re in bed, with the morning sun streaming through Alfred’s half-opened curtains, and the sheets just barely wrapped around them, as they lounge around like they haven’t a care in the world.

“Thank you for that very insightful palm reading. My boyfriend is, in fact, handsome, and sexy, and so fucking perfect I don’t know how I wound up with him,” Jamie whispers against Alfred’s lips, sending chills up his spine, and nudging that small stone of guilt deep in his stomach. 

Alfred hums contentedly, when Jamie kisses him again, perfectly happy to spend a day like this. Until, that is, a few tentative knocks on the bedroom door disturb them.

“I’m busy, come back later,” Alfred yells at the door, barely even breaking the kiss.

“Alfred, Mina’s at the door. She said you have the keys to the shop, and if you don’t get your ass down there to open up in the next five minutes she’ll hex you into the next dimension.” Edward sounds a little sheepish, talking to Alfred through the door.

Alfred groans, before yelling back. “I’ll be there in a minute.”

Jamie gives him a bemused smile, pressing another quick kiss onto his cheek. Alfred turns his head to kiss him on the lips, pushing him back into the bed, until Jamie leans back, breaking the kiss with a laugh. 

“Get out of here, you big stud.” Jamie shoves Alfred to the side with a grin. “Much as I would love to spend the morning with you, I don’t fancy being on the receiving end of Mina’s wrath.”

Alfred rolls his eyes as he stands up and reaches around for some clothes. “So practical, remind me why I’m dating you?”

“Are the words ‘handsome, sexy, perfect,’ ringing any bells?” Jamie calls from the bed as Alfred pulls on his dressing gown.

“Oh, that’s right, how could I forget?” Alfred walks back to the bed, pressing one last kiss onto Jamie’s forehead before picking up his bundle of clothes. “You sure you don’t want to join me?”

Jamie rolls his eyes. “Then you’d never get to work. Go on, I’ll let myself out.”

“I’ll see you tonight?”

“Yes, dumbass, now _go_ before Mina kills us both!”

Alfred shoots him one last devilish grin, before disappearing through the door and heading to the bathroom.

Jamie gets up slowly, gathers his clothes, uses the bathroom after Alfred has left in a whirlwind of golden hair and cologne. He steals a clean shirt from Alfred’s closet, which is only a little bit too small on him, and takes himself to the kitchen to get a bowl of cereal and a mug of coffee.

As luck would have it, Edward is there too, nursing a mug of black coffee at the breakfast bar in between typing furiously on his laptop. Jamie isn’t totally sure what Edward writes his column about, but it has something to do with politics.

“Working hard?” Jamie asks, attempting to strike up friendly conversation. Edward never really warmed to him like Alfred’s other friends did, though he has his suspicions as to why.

Edward hums, before glancing up, as though suddenly realising who’s there. “Sorry, I thought you’d left with Alfred.”

“Nah, I figured it would be best to let him get to work before I got up.” 

Edward hums again. After a moment of pause, he looks up at Jamie with a sigh. “Don’t you have a shop to open or something.”

Jamie winces. That was a dismissal if ever he heard one. “I, uh, I don’t need to open up for another 45 minutes.” That earns a nod from Edward, who then turns back to his laptop, trying to signal an end to the conversation. “Look, man, I wanted to talk to you…”

Edward huffs, before closing his laptop and turning his attention to Jamie, apparently having realised he won’t be getting any work done until Jamie gets his answers. 

“I know you never really liked having me around, and I guess I just wanted to ask why?”

Edward purses his lips. “I don’t know what you mean. I think you’re a great guy. Alfred is lucky to have you.” It sounds like he’s reciting a script. Jamie wonders how on earth Alfred can be so oblivious to Edward’s feelings for him when he hides them so badly.

“You’re in love with him, right?” he says, deciding it’s probably best to be frank. “I mean, that’s it, right? That’s why you don’t like me.”

Edward freezes, and then averts his gaze, hand twitching for his laptop like he’s wondering if it’s too late to just carry on pretending to work. He affects a nervous laugh. “Okay, now I really don’t know what you mean.”

“I’m not mad about it, I swear, I’m not about to challenge you to a duel or anything, I just… I wanted to know. ‘Cause Alfred doesn’t think there’s anything there, but I see the way you look at him, especially when I’m around.”

“I don’t-“

“Edward, come on. I just want the whole story, you know? I don’t want to get in the middle of something here, and at the moment I feel like I am.”

“You’re not. I… I have feelings for him, but I’m not in any rush to act on them, and he seems pretty into you.”

Jamie nods. It’s what he wanted to hear, he knows that, so why does it feel so bittersweet. He knows the truth now, and he hates it.

“Please, don’t break up with Alfred over this.” Edward’s voice is quiet. “I just want him to be happy, and he seems happy with you.”

Jamie nods again. “Thank you. For telling the truth, I mean. I guess it’s not exactly easy to confess that kind of shit to the guy you like’s boyfriend.” He offers up an awkward laugh. It falls pretty flat. “I won’t tell Alfred what you said.”

Edward breathes a sigh of relief. He doesn’t know what he’d do if Alfred ever found out.

Jamie empties his near-untouched bowl of cereal into the bin, suddenly no longer hungry, and takes it over to the sink with his half-empty coffee mug. 

“Hey, leave those there, I’ll sort them,” Edward says, offering Jamie a tentative smile.

Jamie smiles back, and puts the bowl and mug in the sink, before hastening to leave, even though there’s still a good half an hour before he needs to get the work. Edward’s words run on repeat in his head as he walks across the street to his shop:

_I have feelings for him_

_I just want him to be happy_

_He seems happy with you_  

Edward may have sugar coated the truth, but Jamie can see it in his eyes. Edward is utterly in love with Alfred, not that Jamie can blame him. All that’s left to decide is what Jamie does about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for reading! i thrive on comments and kudos, please let me know what you thought! <3
> 
> next time: even more shit will be hitting the fan. like so much shit. it's a mess. 
> 
> thank you again for reading, feedback from you guys genuinely inspires me to adjust my plan for this fic just to incorporate new ideas from your comments (there would be no camping trip without sheofthebookandsong, who mentioned bed sharing, and my conversations with luckymoony helped me develop so much surplus drama for these plots...) <3 <3 <3


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter 9, here we come!
> 
> im giving you guys what you want, but im doing it on my terms.
> 
> translation: get ready bc im doing my very best to hit you with all the emotions.
> 
> also i have this thing about being by the ocean - i find it super calming and, since all of these characters are 90% self projection at this point, i figured i may as well include it. also luckymoony encouraged me to do so, and it made sense in terms of geography.... 
> 
> anyway, enjoy!!

Sometimes Jamie wonders If his life would be simpler if he had never met Alfred Paget. It’s nothing to do with Alfred in particular, but more the baggage he brings with him, not that Jamie can bring himself to resent Alfred for anything. But, you see, the thing is, Jamie has inadvertently fallen head over heels in love with Alfred. 

Honestly, Jamie can’t really say he blames Edward for feeling the same. What kind of idiot wouldn’t be hopelessly in love with Alfred? 

But the dilemma remains as to what Jamie is supposed to do with the information he has now. It was so much easier before he knew about Alfred and Edward’s history – can he call it a history if nothing really happened? – and before this feeling that he was stepping into the middle of something settled in his gut. 

Jamie doesn’t want to hurt anyone, inadvertently or otherwise, and, from the expression on Edward’s face, he’s clearly doing that right now. But, then, Alfred is perhaps the best thing that’s ever happened to him. None of his previous partners have quite measured up the way Alfred has, and Jamie doesn’t know if he could bear to throw that away over Edward’s feelings. Alfred had assured him that he was over Edward now. Surely that was enough. 

Unless.

Unless Alfred was lying, or in denial, or, at the very least, bending the truth. If that was the case, Jamie doubts he could ever truly be happy with Alfred. Fuck, he really hates this.

How knows what the right thing to do is, as much as he doesn’t want to do it. 

Alfred arrives at his apartment at five minutes past 6, a little flushed, as he launches into an apology for being late, pressing a kiss onto Jamie’s cheek mid-sentence as he explains that he’d knocked over some potions on his way out that needed to be cleaned up urgently before they started enchanting his floorboards and carpets. Jamie laughs, hoping Alfred can’t see how strained it is.

“So why’d you want to meet here instead of going out?” Alfred waggles his eyebrows suggestively, but Jamie doesn’t take the bait, much as he’d love to.

“I, uh, I just wanted to talk to you.”

If Alfred is picking up on the tone, then he’s doing a very good job of hiding it. “Okay, cool, about what?”

Jamie falters. “Um, do you want a drink first? It’s not urgent.” He’s stalling. Fuck, he wishes he had the courage to just get it over with. Do it quick, like ripping off a plaster.

“Yeah, sure, why not.” Alfred smiles. Jamie loves his smile. He forces himself to look away, pouring two glasses of wine. God, he hopes Alfred can’t see his hands shaking.

The two of them walk over to the couch and take a seat in relative silence. If Alfred hasn’t picked up on the fact that _something_ is going on by now, then Jamie really ought to question his observation skills. Charlie hops up onto the sofa between them, and Jamie is a little relieved that she doesn’t curl up in his lap like she does sometimes. It might make some of the following conversation a little easier.

“Okay, come on, what’s up?” Alfred doesn’t look worried at all. It feels wrong, like leading an innocent lamb to slaughter. Jamie supposes his own heart is about to go under the knife as well.

He takes a deep breath, preparing himself, and then turns to face Alfred. The least he can do is look him in the eye. “I’ve been thinking about what we talked about at Samhain-“ 

“About Edward? I told you I’m over him.”

“I know, Alfred, but the thing is I’m not sure he’s over you, and, if I’m being honest, I’m not sure you are either.”

“Don’t you trust me?” Alfred’s entire face crumples, a hint of indignation in his voice as he avoids Jamie’s eye. That’s about all the proof he needed.

“I’d trust you with my life, Alfred, but I don’t think you know your own heart.”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

“Please don’t get upset, Alfred, I don’t want to make this difficult.” Jamie reaches over a hand to catch Alfred’s.

“Then don’t do this.” His voice is so desperate as he squeezes Jamie’s hand tightly.

Jamie presses his eyes shut, as though maybe if he can’t see Alfred’s face this might be easier. “We both know this is the right thing to do.” 

“The right thing? Jamie, no, the right thing is staying together, okay, I love-“

“Stop. Please, don’t say it, Alfred, don’t make this impossible.”

Alfred stares at him defiantly. “I love you.” God, he says it so gently, so tenderly that it almost brings tears to Jamie’s eyes. It’s everything he wanted to hear before, and it’s everything he can’t bear to hear now.

“I don’t believe you,” Jamie croaks, and Alfred practically recoils from him.

“What?” He sounds so hurt that it would break Jamie’s heart if it wasn’t already shattered into tiny pieces on the floor.

“I don’t think you do. I think you’re lying to yourself-“

“Lying to myself? Jamie, you don’t get to decide how you _think_ I feel!” Alfred interrupts him, his cheeks flushing with anger.

“Can you honestly look me in the eye and tell me you don’t love Edward at all?”

Alfred falters. He sits there for a moment, blinking mutely like a deer caught in the headlights. 

Jamie purses his lips, dwelling in the silence for a few beats, before he turns back to Alfred, reaching up a hand to touch Alfred’s cheek. “I love you, Alfred, but-“

“If you love me then please don’t-“

“But I can’t keep waiting for you to stop loving him.” Jamie drops his hand, pulling it back towards himself somewhat protectively. 

“I’ll stop seeing him-”

“Alfred.”

“-and I’ll move out of the apartment-”

“Alfred, no.” 

“-and I’ll stop going to Sabbats so I don’t have to see him-”

“Alfred, stop!” Jamie interrupts him, apparently stunning him into silence. “I don’t want you cutting ties with anyone, especially your coven. They’re _family_ , right? That’s what you told me.”

Alfred grabs at Jamie’s hands again, squeezing them tightly in his. “Please, Jamie, don’t leave me over this. Please, I can love you, I _will_ love you, please.” He’s crying now, as he leans in and presses kisses onto Jamie’s cheeks, and then the corner of his mouth, and then eventually his lips. God, Alfred tastes like tears as well. 

For a moment, Jamie almost gives in, feeling the familiar warmth of Alfred’s body close to his. And then he remembers Edward’s face when he’d admitted he loved Alfred. He pushes Alfred off gently, standing up and stepping back from the sofa a few paces.

“I think you should go, Alfred.” Jamie can’t even bring his voice above a whisper. He looks away to make sure he doesn’t see Alfred’s face crumple.

“So that’s it?” Alfred asks, all the fight having drained out of him.

Jamie nods mutely.

“Okay then.” Alfred nods briskly, standing up and smoothing down his trousers, all business all of a sudden, as though he’s switched off the part of his brain that supplies emotion. “Well, then I wish you all of the best.” 

He doesn’t spare Jamie another glance as he walks to the door, taking his coat off of the hook and pulling it on as Jamie mutters a quiet “and I, you.”

Alfred nods again in acknowledgement. “Goodbye, then.”

“Goodbye,” Jamie echoes. The sensation of emptiness is settling over him, making him feel hollow. He turns away from the door, not wanting to watch Alfred leave. It’s only when he hears the door slam shut that he finally lets the tears he’s been holding back start falling.

 

* * *

 

Alfred doesn’t know what to think. He doesn’t know what to feel anymore.

The thing is, he thought he could get there with Jamie. He was convinced that he could love Jamie eventually, that if he spent enough time around Jamie then all his feelings for Edward would eventually just disappear, and he could be happy.

Apparently, Jamie didn’t think that was the case. 

He feels lost. Maybe he wasn’t in love with Jamie, but he’d seen their relationship as an anchoring point – a way to tether himself in reality, away from Edward. Now it’s like he’s been set adrift in a huge expansive ocean, and left without an oar to row himself home. 

The thought briefly crosses his mind that someone might have planted those thoughts in Jamie’s head. He wonders if Mina would do that, but he dismisses that thought immediately. She might have interfered with their dates a few times, but he doubts she would ever go as far as to suggest a break up, especially when she knew how invested Alfred had become over the past few months. Still, she might have let something slip.

He shakes his head like he can shake away the thought.

He pulls out his phone and texts Mina.

_He dumped me._

The typing bubble pops up immediately, but Alfred turns off his phone and tucks it back into his pocket, letting himself into his apartment. He’s not expecting to see Edward sat on the sofa with a man he doesn’t recognise, each of them holding a glass of wine, Edward laughing, apparently at something the stranger said. Alfred freezes in the doorway.

Edward turns at the sound of the door open, face falling immediately. “Alfred, uh, you said you’d be out late. I thought you a date with Jamie?” 

God, Alfred has no right to feel jealous of the man sat on the sofa opposite Edward. _He_ pushed _Edward_ away, and _he_ dated someone else first. And yet, still, jealousy settles in his gut like a knife sinking into his stomach. “Yeah, well, so did I,” Alfred mutters, taking off his jacket and not offering any more information.

“Did something come up?” Edward probes, looking back at his date with an apologetic smile. 

“Uh, yeah, he broke up with me.” Alfred doesn’t wait around for Edward’s reaction, making a beeline for his bedroom as tears threaten to spill down his cheeks.

Before the door has even clicked shut behind him, Alfred is reaching into his closet and pulling out a suitcase, pulling shirts and underwear and jeans out of drawers and off hangers and packing them haphazardly. He hears a quiet exchange, clearly not intended for him to hear, and then the open and close of the apartment door.

Edward’s phone rings on the other side of the door before he can come and try to talk to Alfred. From the sound of things, it’s Mina. Alfred isn’t surprised. He hasn’t looked at his phone since he texted her, and she’s probably worried out of her mind. Alfred is still frantically packing and crying when the apartment door opens and closes again, and Mina’s voice appears on the other side of the bedroom door.

“Alfred? I’m coming in, okay?” 

Alfred furiously wipes his eyes as the door cracks open, but there’s no fooling Mina. He collapses into her arms wordlessly, sobbing into her shoulder as she strokes his hair, muttering soothing platitudes to him. He catches sight of Edward, pacing outside in the living room, and Florence sitting on the sofa, apparently trying to talk _him_ down, and then the door swings shut and he loses sight of them both. 

“He broke up with me. He thinks I’m still in love with Edward,” Alfred hiccups, leaning back a little.

Mina smooths her hand over his cheek. “Aren’t you though?”

Alfred recoils. She wouldn’t. She couldn’t have. “Did you say something to him?”

“What?” Mina starts. “Alfred, of course not, why on earth would I do that?” 

Alfred shrugs indignantly.

“I didn’t say anything to him, I promise.” Before either of them can react, Mina spots the suitcase on his bed. “Heading home?”

“I need to get away from all of this. From Jamie, and Edward, and this apartment. Alfred gestures widely. “You can manage without me at the shop for a while, right?”

Mina nods with a slightly forced smile. “Yeah, I get it. You need to do your thing.” 

They stand in silence for a moment, that edge of hostility still sitting between them, until, eventually, Alfred speaks up in a quiet voice. “Mina? Will you help me pack?”

Mina smiles slightly, and nods, stepping over to his suitcase and folding the clothes he had stuffed in hastily, as Alfred pulls out another bag and starts packing books and his laptop and his tarot cards. 

“Can you explain to Edward?” Alfred asks quietly, once everything is packed. “I don’t think I’m ready to have that conversation right now.”

Mina nods. God, Alfred owes her so many favours for this. “Text me when you get there, okay? And don’t forget to stop at some point.”

“I will, I promise.” He presses a kiss to her cheek, and then slings his rucksack over his shoulder, and grabs the handle of his suitcase, strolling out of his bedroom without looking in Edward’s direction, and walking out of the door without a second glance. He’ll apologise later, he tells himself, but for now he needs to get out before he breaks.

He texts his parents from a service station to let them know he’s on his way. They don’t mind spontaneous visits, in fact Alfred thinks they rather enjoy them. Alfred definitely doesn’t visit home as often as he should, because holidays are always a nightmare. Between his siblings, and half-siblings, and their spouses, and their children, big family occasions seem far too difficult to manage, so he tends to avoid them in favour of spending them with his coven instead.  

Still, it’s become something of a habit to return home when he ends a serious relationship, and Jamie is no exception to the rule. Something about going home has always helped to soothe his soul somehow, as though a combination of his childhood bedroom, his parents, and the sea has magical healing properties.

His parents are waiting at the door when he arrives, stepping out of the car and taking in the smell of the sea drifting in on the wind towards Plas Newydd. They don’t ask him any questions, but he explains anyway, telling them the full story from beginning to end. It’s strangely therapeutic, finally verbalising everything that has happened over the past year or so, transforming the words from thoughts kept in the confines of his mind to something he can speak and share.

There’s something powerful about Plas Newydd. Maybe it’s the protective runes hidden in the architecture of the building, or the way the dishes wash themselves and the brooms sweep the floors without guidance, or the way his parents’ familiars, a swallow for his mother, and a raven for his father, swoop through the halls. Or maybe it’s the fact that he can see the sea from his bedroom window.

He spends hours on the beach, even though the skies are dark grey and the waves beat unforgivingly on the shore and the wind blows sand at him. Sometimes, if the sea isn’t too wild, he’ll wade in up to his waist (while Charlie waits patiently on the shore, watching him in disgust) and sink down into the water, tasting the salt on his lips and relishing in the feeling of sand and salt in his hair. It’s comforting, grounding, and it helps him to feel _okay_ again.

It also gives him an odd sense of clarity, when he’s totally submerged in the water, eyes pressed shut, lungs burning slightly with the need for air. It gives him time to think, to realise where he’s gone wrong in the past.

God, he’s been such an idiot.

Alfred spends three weeks there, wallowing in shame over how badly he’s behaved. He realises now what a fool he’s been, thinking he could ever have gotten over Edward simply by ignoring him. He also realises how much pain he must have put Edward through while he tried to muddle through his feelings.

He has a lot to apologise for.

Eventually, his mother corners him and tells him that, much as she loves having him around, it’s time to go home and face up to everything he ran away from. She’s not wrong, of course.

He texts Edward before he leaves, and then turns off his phone to help him resist the urge to check it while he drives just to see if Edward has replied.

 

* * *

 

When he arrives back at the apartment, it seems the entire coven has squished into his small flat, sitting on the sofa and the coffee table and the floor and at the breakfast bar, apparently just waiting for him to arrive. 

He’s swamped immediately with hugs and sympathetic smiles and he realises belatedly how much he’s missed everybody while he was away. Charles offers to hex Jamie’s food, and Victoria suggests summoning some spirits to haunt him. Alfred politely declines both offers. He catches sight of soft brown curls at the back of the crowd. He doesn’t think he needs revenge anymore.

Mina scolds him for barely even texting him while he was away, and Florence gives him a hug and tells him that she’s happy he’s back. “Those two went half-mad while you were gone,” she nods at Mina, who has grabbed Edward and is chatting animatedly with him about something. Alfred laughs somewhat nervously, because that means Edward missed him. 

Edward doesn’t find him until everyone else has said their goodbyes and shuffled out the door, throwing smiles at the two of them and sending a few winks their way as they go. Some things never change, Alfred supposes.

He doesn’t have time to dwell on it, though, because Edward is stood in front of him with his hands stuffed into his pockets like a little kid, smiling sheepishly at him from under his ridiculously gorgeous curly hair – god, Alfred has missed that hair, has it grown longer while he was away?

“Hey,” Edward says, his voice barely louder than a whisper.

There’s such a huge rift sitting between them, between what happened with Jamie, and Alfred’s choice to shut Edward out, and the guy Edward was with that night Jamie ended things that Alfred doesn’t even know where to begin.

“Hey,” He replies. That seems like a pretty good start.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you guys liked this chapter, sorry for the slightly cliffhanger-esque ending... hopefully i'll get chapter 10 up soon so i don't leave you all hanging on that for too long...
> 
> so jamie is gone, and it's pretty much for good this time. im going to write him into the epilogue, but in a definitively non-troublesome way, bc im sorry but my oc deserves his happy ending and i've become very attached to him...
> 
> next chapter: a conversation, shameless inclusion of oscar wilde's poetry, say it first vibes, and someone looking at rings (is that cryptic enough?)
> 
> thank you for reading! i love to hear what you guys think! <3 <3 <3


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so this chapter has arrived super early bc i have no self control and sheofthebookandsong asked me to post it sooner and so i did, so... surprise!
> 
> before you read, im a slut for oscar wilde so i included a hefty reference which i now realise might require some knowledge of the subject, so, for anyone who might not know, im going to include that here. 
> 
> oscar wilde was involved in a somewhat tempestuous relationship with lord alfred douglas (affectionately nicknamed bosie). bosie's father, the marquess of queensbury found out and basically started spreading rumours that wilde was a 'sodomite', so wilde, following strong encouragement from bosie, tried to sue for libel. unfortunately, the marquess of queensbury was able to flip this on wilde in trial by finding proof to support his comments, leading to wilde being convicted on charges of gross indecency and sentenced to two years of hard labour in prison. 
> 
> upon his release, wilde wrote 'the ballad of reading gaol' which is, in essence, a criticism of the brutality of prison punishments. in it, he focuses on the execution of charles thomas woodbridge, who was executed in reading gaol, while wilde was there, for murdering his wife. the verses i've picked out, however, are often interpreted to compare woolridge killing his wife with bosie betraying him. 
> 
> wilde left england when he was released from prison and never returned. he was briefly reunited with bosie, much to the dismay of many of his friends, and they only separated when their respective families threatened to cut off their allowances and leave them penniless. 
> 
> bosie returned for wilde's funeral, as was chief mourner, though there was allegedly an altercation between him and robbie ross, another of wilde's former lovers, and almost certainly a better friend than bosie ever was to him. 
> 
> that's probably way more information than you'd ever need to know but i really want to keep my pretentious literature reference. (also you should watch 'the happy prince' if you want more info on that, it's a good film)
> 
> anyway, if you made it to the end of this note then congratulations! now, on with the fic!

Edward and Alfred stand opposite each other for what feels like eons, neither of them quite sure where to begin with all that has happened between them since they first walked into each other’s lives some year and a half ago. Edward absent-mindedly bites his lip, which only serves to remind Alfred of the feelings he quite clearly isn’t as over as he’d convinced himself he was.  
  
Eventually, Alfred is the one who speaks first. “I’m sorry,” he says. Edward makes no attempt to tell Alfred not to apologise, nor does he suggest that he welcomes the apology. “I have… treated you like crap lately.” 

Edward purses his lips and lets out a sharp exhale that could almost be a laugh if it wasn’t for the look on his face. “I’ve noticed.”

Alfred swallows, as his resolve to admit his feelings for Edward disappears altogether. “I, uh, there’s no excuse. I pushed you away because I was dating Jamie, and I realise now how shitty of me that was.”  
  
Edward scoffs again. “Yeah, you think?”

“I get it if you hate me now, Edward, I’d deserve it, but is there any chance you could forgive me if I grovelled down on my knees?” Alfred can’t bring himself to look at Edward, even when he hears Edward’s footsteps approaching him, closing the gap between them.

It’s not until Alfred feels Edward’s hands on his shoulders, thumbs just brushing the skin of his neck exposed by his shirt, that he looks up to see, not hatred, but tenderness.

“Alfred, I could never hate you.” God, does Edward know how much Alfred’s heart is melting right now? “And as for forgiveness… I forgave you a long time ago.”

Alfred almost collapses right then and there, in fact he probably would if it weren’t for Edward, who lets Alfred fall into his arms, practically melting into him. It takes everything in him not to whisper ‘I love you’ into Edward’s shoulder.

“So we’re good?” Alfred mumbles when they finally break apart.

Edward’s hand brushes his cheek, just for a second. “Yeah, we’re good. I missed you, you big idiot.”

And, just like that, they fall back into their old routine.

Alfred stops locking himself away in his room and starts sitting on the sofa again, reading The Picture of Dorian Gray for the millionth time, or, every now and then, something new. Edward joins him somewhat tentatively at first, the two of them sitting, curled up, in their own separate corners of the sofa, but eventually it becomes habitual, and comfortable, and their legs stretch across the gap between them, with feet brushing against calves and knees knocking against ankles.

It’s not much, but, at the same time, it’s _everything_. Edward has missed all these small moments of tenderness over the past few months, it’s like he’s been starving for Alfred’s touch all this time.

“What are you reading today?” Edward asks one evening, nudging Alfred’s leg with his foot as he does so. They’re sat on the sofa, each of them sprawled out into each other’s space, while Edward does a crossword and Alfred reads something that looks like a book of poetry.

“ _The Ballad of Reading Gaol_. Oscar Wilde wrote it about his time in prison.” Alfred looks up with a small smile.

Edward chews on his lip for a second before he speaks. “Read it to me?”

Alfred looks up at him over his book, tilting his head to the side slightly. “It’s very long.”

“Okay, then read me your favourite part.” Edward pokes at Alfred with his foot again, smiling a little playfully. He knows Alfred will have a favourite part, because he’s probably already read this poem more times than he can count on his fingers. 

Alfred swallows, nods, and begins.

_Yet each man kills the thing he loves_  
_By each let this be heard,_  
_Some do it with a bitter look,_  
_Some with a flattering word,_  
_The coward does it with a kiss,  
_ _The brave man with a sword!_

_Some kill their love when they are young,_  
_And some when they are old;_  
_Some strangle with the hands of Lust,_  
_Some with the hands of Gold:_  
_The kindest use a knife, because  
_ _The dead so soon grow cold._

_Some love too little, some too long,_  
_Some sell, and others buy;_  
_Some do the deed with many tears,_  
_And some without a sigh:_  
_For each man kills the thing he loves,  
_ _Yet each man does not die._

There’s something strikingly sincere about the way he speaks the words, eyes never leaving the page, even though Edward is almost certain Alfred must have memorized those verses by now. The words work their way right into Edward’s heart, so beautiful, and so tragic.

“Who’s it about?”

“Technically? Charles Thomas Woodbridge. He was executed for killing his wife while Wilde was still in jail. But I think he’s comparing that to the way his lover betrayed him, calling him cowardly for his behavior, you know?”

Alfred phrases it so carefully, so perfectly, that Edward takes the initiative to read between the lines just a little. “But he forgave his lover, didn’t he?”

Alfred’s lips lift up in a small smile again. “Yes. He did. Whether or not that was a good decision… well, I suppose it depends who you ask, doesn’t it?” 

Edward smiles back at him, and there’s that slight charge in the air between them that makes him want to say more. Instead, the two of them lapse into comfortable silence again.

 

* * *

 

 

“No, you’re pronouncing it wrong, Alfred-“ 

“Okay, Hermione Granger,” Alfred quirks an eyebrow at Edward, who rubs a hand over his face in exasperation.

“Do you want to learn how to cast a spell without causing a major catastrophe?” 

God, Alfred has to admit that Edward acting as his teacher is an idea he enjoys quite a lot, in fact it’s getting him rather hot and bothered, but Alfred doubts he’ll have any success. “We’ve been at this for hours now, Edward.”

“We’ve been trying for thirty minutes.”

Only thirty minutes? Perhaps Alfred was finding it rather difficult to stave off his feelings for Edward when he was just stood there, looking like that, telling Alfred where he’s going wrong with his attempts to cast a spell. Oh god, now he’s getting side-tracked.

“Look, you’re not the first person to try and teach me how to do this properly, and I promise you that every single person has failed. Have you heard about the time I accidentally cast a spell on our library that swapped all of the book covers? My father’s first edition copy of Les Mis was actually War and Peace for weeks until he figured out how to reverse my disaster.”

“I… How?”

Alfred shrugs. “I guess I just pronounced the words wrong, right?”

Edward huffs, before giving in. “Fine, I give up, you can reclaim your title as the worst witch in existence.”

“You’re too kind, careful or it’ll go to my head.” Alfred bumps into Edward playfully as he closes the distance between them, but accidentally stumbles, only saved from total humiliation by Edward catching him by the elbow, another hand circling his waist and stopping him from hitting the floor.

And now their faces are only inches apart.

Alfred starts to wonder where all the air in the room has gone, and if maybe it has been sucked out, because suddenly he can’t breathe properly, and the only think he can look at is Edward’s lips. God, if only he could just lean in and kiss him, maybe things would be simpler. 

But he’s hurt Edward enough, he decides. It’s high time he let Edward make the call.

Edward backs up, sets him back on his feet and blushes slightly. 

“My hero,” Alfred comments wryly, before remembering that night under the stars. It’s his turn to blush, excusing himself to go to the bathroom, and trying not to scream as he walks away.  

 

* * *

 

Edward starts coming into the shop again and lying down on Alfred’s sofa in his back room whenever Alfred doesn’t have customers. He realises how much he’s missed that sofa, and the crazy neon light which seems to shift colours for no reason in particular. He wonders vaguely if it’s enchanted.

If it is, it wasn’t enchanted by Alfred, that’s for sure. 

It’s usually a soft purple, like it was the first time Edward visited, though, more and more frequently, it takes on shades of pink. He remembers seeing The room take on a faint pink glow when Jamie visited Alfred, and isn’t quite sure what to make of that fact. Perhaps he’s reading into things, and he doesn’t dare ask, too afraid to rock the boat.

Alfred even starts giving him palm readings again, and Edward remembers why he’d seen the end of them as a potential form of respite. His heart pounds relentlessly each time Alfred takes his hand and traces it with familiar touches, telling Edward that he’s probably going to get promoted to a more significant column for the paper he writes for, and that he seems to be very content with his life as it is at the moment.   
  
Alfred doesn’t read his love line, though. He hasn’t dared look since he first met Edward. It feels too intimate, too painful. What if he saw something he didn’t want to see? It’s better to leave it to the unknown.

At least he managed to not-so-subtly find out that the guy Edward was with the night Alfred and Jamie broke up is no longer in his life, and hasn’t been since that night.

“It was only our first date, and honestly he was a bit of a dick about me taking a raincheck for your sake, so I don’t think things would have worked out anyway.” Edward had shrugged when Alfred asked.

That was reassuring to say the least.

 

* * *

 

“Are they in there again?” Florence presses a kiss to Mina’s cheek as she grabs a seat behind the counter with her on her lunch break. She’s actually had to hire more staff because Edward is hardly around now to just cover her lunch break or take over while she ducks out to the back to make out with Mina for a few minutes.

“They’ve been in there for like two hours already.”

“And you’re sure they aren’t having sex?” 

Mina rolls her eyes. “Trust me, we’d know. Take it from someone who shared a wall with him for 6 years, Alfred is loud when he’s getting what he wants.”

Florence wrinkles her nose. “Gross.”

“Oh come on, we both know you’re exactly the same.” Mina leans into her girlfriend, and presses a kiss onto her rapidly reddening cheek.

Florence splutters wordlessly for a few seconds, looking around the shop to make sure there aren’t any customers hidden behind displays that might have overheard Mina. “Well, you’re loud too,” she manages eventually. Not her finest comeback. 

Mina winks by way of response, and then the bell above the door rings to announce the arrival of another customer, and the conversation is quickly put to an end.

 

* * *

 

Alfred can’t cook.

It’s never been his forte, but he knows Edward has been missing home cooked meals now he’s not living with Florence, so he decides to make an effort. He gets a recipe from Flo for a tomato pasta sauce that she tells him he shouldn’t be able to mess up too badly, and he really does try his best.

It takes him three attempts, and when he’s finished the pasta is a little undercooked, and the sauce tastes a little bit of burnt onions, but, all in all, he doesn’t think it’s a bad effort. It’s certainly better than his earlier attempts, when his pasta practically fell apart when he touched it and the sauce was weirdly acidic.

He lights a couple of candles and sticks of incense to make the apartment feel cosier, just in time for Edward to walk through the door, bringing with him the news of the promotion Alfred predicted.

“My column is double the size it used to be, and there’s talk of a Q & A segment once a month, and-“ Edward stops mid-sentence and sniffs the air just a little. “Is something cooking?”

Alfred smiles nervously. “I made dinner. I thought you might appreciate something other than takeaway and reheated food from Florence.”

“You cooked it? Should I be worried?” Edward’s face splits into a grin after a beat of silence. “I’m just kidding, I can’t wait to try it, Al, thank you for this.”

Alfred can feel his cheeks flushing. “I just thought it might be nice. Don’t expect too much, though.”

“I’m sure it’s brilliant.” Edward pulls out a chair and sits down, immediately eating a forkful out of the bowl Alfred sets in front of him. He chews thoughtfully for a moment, before grinning up at Alfred. “It’s wonderful. Come on, sit down and eat, unless you’re worried it might poison you. You didn’t use magic on this, did you?”

Alfred laughs as he sits down. “No, I didn’t, don’t worry.”

Edward feels Charlie brush against his leg under the table, before sitting herself down on top of his feet, and remembers how much he’d missed that over the past few months. Dottie, meanwhile, has clambered down his arm and is making her way across the table towards Alfred. It’s such a comfortable, familiar scene, and yet it’s also one he hasn’t seen in months. It’s nice, like the two of them have found their rhythm again, settling back into old routines.

“Did you, uh, did you want anything to drink? Flo told me to serve white wine with this, but if you’d prefer-“ 

“Wine sounds lovely, Al.” Edward interrupts him before he can start rambling nervously.

Alfred nods, getting up and walking to the fridge in a slight daze to get the wine Florence had recommended. He’s really regretting lighting the candles, because this is starting to feel a little too much like a date. Not that he objects to that, it’s just that his heart can’t take any more battering, and all he wants is to just kiss Edward senseless, and then take him on real dates and fall even deeper in love with him than he already has, if that’s even possible.

Fuck, he needs to pull himself together.

He and Edward eat the rest of their meal slowly, mostly too distracted by talking to each other to bother eating too quickly. Edward fills Alfred in on his promotion, and Alfred tells him about his customer today who had been unbelievably rude when Alfred didn’t give him the fortune it seems he wanted.

Alfred is about to offer to clean the dishes when his phone buzzes with a text from Florence, which is fairly unusual to say the least.

_ALFRED I HAVE A PROBLEM AND I NEED YOUR HELP IMMEDIATELY!!_

Her message is quickly followed by two images, both of rings. Alfred’s eyes widen in almost comical shock.

_WHICH OF THESE DO YOU THINK MINA WOULD PREFER??_

_ALFRED PAGET STOP FLIRTING WITH EDWARD FOR THREE SECONDS THIS IS A MATTER OF LIFE OR DEATH_

Alfred turns to Edward, who looks more than a little confused by the goofy grin on his face. “Florence is going to propose to Mina.” 

“Sorry, she’s going to do _what_?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! 
> 
> i hope you liked it, and that eveerything made sense!! hopefully i'll be able to post chapter 11 sooner rather than later, i'm definitely going to do my best to get it out as quickly as i can!
> 
> the next chapter is the last one before the epilogue! i wonder what on earth might happen....
> 
> thank you again for reading! <3


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my god it's happening - the final chapter! 
> 
> you guys this chapter drove me insane trying to write it - this was a struggle and a half, so like huge thanks to luckymoony and sheofthebookandsong who listened to me ramble about this for ages, you guys are the true legends here. 
> 
> i think the only thing left for me to say is enjoy the chapter!

Florence has planned out her proposal to the letter, and, thanks to Alfred’s help with the rings, and his willingness to tag along with Edward as a cameraman for when she eventually does it, she thinks she might finally be ready.

That doesn’t stop her nerves from eating her alive. She knows that she and Mina have talked about this, and that this is something they both want, but _god_ , what if she says no? Or what if Mina hates the ring? Or what if Florence fumbles her words during the proposal? 

Oh god, her hands are sweating.

Fuck, she needs to calm down. 

Did she actually bring the ring with her? She reaches into her jacket pocket, and is relieved to feel the familiar weight of the ring box, nestled in beside some tissues, because she’s about 99% sure this proposal will end in tears.

She’s brought Mina back to the park where they went on their first date, with a picnic basket full of goodies, and Edward and Alfred in tow. God, she remembers their first date, how nervous she had been back then, somehow even more nervous than she is today. 

They had eaten dinner at a ridiculously fancy restaurant, and left hand in hand, suddenly unwilling to go home. It was Mina who had suggested the detour through the park, and Florence had obliged, because she knew how much Mina loved the park at night time.

And so they’d walked, hand in hand, for what felt like hours, strolling in circles until the small hours of the morning, and then Florence had invited Mina back to her place, maybe just for a glass of wine, or maybe for something more, if Mina was interested…

It had also been in this park where Florence had first told Mina she loved her, on a hot summer day, when the two of them were laying in the grass in shady spot, Mina curled into Florence’s side as they whispered to each other, and then it had hit her. She was in love.

It had been so easy to say, so honest. She can still remember the way Mina’s face lit up, and the way she said it back and kissed Florence with lips that tasted like the strawberries from the picnic. 

And now, Florence was going to propose to her, here, in this park.

She spots an opportunity, asking Alfred to take a photo of the two of them to remember the occasion by. As the two of them stand, arms around each other’s waists, Alfred hits record on his phone and nods in Florence’s direction.

She turns and gets down on one knee before Mina can even blink, and pulls out the ring box with her heart in her throat. “Will you marry me, Mina?” 

Mina squeaks and slaps her hand over her mouth, before pulling open her bag and rummaging through it, much to Florence’s confusion, until eventually she pulls out a ring box of her own. Florence almost bursts into tears just looking at her.

Alfred and Edward exchange grins as Mina gets down on one knee herself. 

“That depends,” she says, somewhat breathlessly. “Will _you_ marry _me_?”

Florence laughs, wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand, barely even able to find the words to say _yes, of course, yes, I love you, yes_. Instead she nods, and smiles, barely able to contain her joy when Mina slips the ring onto her finger.

“Does this mean you’ll marry me then?” Florence eventually manages, and it’s Mina’s turn to laugh through her tears as Florence slides her own ring onto Mina’s finger.

“I love you so much,” Mina whispers, pressing a quick kiss onto Florence’s lips. “I can’t wait to marry you.”

“I’ve wanted to marry you since we first met,” Florence says, almost disbelievingly. “I can’t believe it’s finally happening. I also can’t believe you were going to propose today as well.” 

“Oh come on, this is the perfect place to do it. I wouldn’t have it any other way.” 

Florence is thankful now for having brought tissues, pulling them out and giving a couple to her girlfriend, who wipes her eyes with a laugh.

Satisfied that Mina and Florence are far too interested in each other, and their new engagement rings, Alfred stops recording and tugs Edward by the elbow to go for a stroll up the park.   
  
“I told you it would be cute if they both planned to propose at the same time.” 

Edward shakes his head. “I’m still not convinced we should have meddled and put the idea in their heads. But,” he concedes, “it was adorable.”

“I just can’t believe they’re engaged. Still, if anyone was going to make it, it was those two, you know?” Alfred glances back at them with an air of slight wistfulness.

“They’re perfect for each other,” Edward muses. 

“Do you ever worry that you might not find that?”

Edward turns to look at Alfred, who has his eyes fixed straight ahead as he carries on walking. “All the time. I think I’m just destined to be in love with one person for the rest of my life, regardless of whether or not they love me back.” 

Alfred doesn’t look over at him, but his lips tilt up a little at the corners. “I know how that feels.”

 

* * *

 

The two of them are in Alfred’s fortune telling room again when it happens.

Edward is sprawled out on Alfred’s sofa, with Charlie half-asleep in his lap like usual, with Dottie sleeping on her back, and Alfred is sat on the floor with his head resting against Edward’s thigh. Edward is trailing a hand through Alfred’s hair absent-mindedly, his other hand stroking Charlie, as he stares up at the ceiling. He never noticed all the tiny silver stars painted on the ceiling of the room. He’ll have to ask Alfred if the stars map out actual constellations or if they’re just randomly placed.

The light is decidedly pink for today, making the room look as though Edward is staring at it through rose tinted glasses. He rather likes that idea.

Alfred is being rather unfairly distracted from doing anything in particular by Edward’s hand in his hair, so he grabs it, turning and taking it in his own, not that that’s really much better for his heart.   
  
“Alfred, you read my palm two days ago, I doubt anything has changed,” Edward grumbles, but he’s smiling.

“Not all of it.” Alfred speaks without realising it, earning a curious look from Edward.

“Which bit didn’t you read?”

Alfred’s words stick in his throat, making them come out all wrong, harsh and choked. “Your love line.”

Edward tilts his head. “Well, I’m dying to know what it says there.”

“I, uh, I haven’t really read your love line in a while.” Oh god, Alfred hates himself. He really didn’t have to say that. The pink light is gradually taking on more of an orange hue as his heart pounds in his chest.

Edward raises an eyebrow, and then opens up his hand without replying. 

Alfred nods, and then traces along the line with a tenderness that makes Edward shiver just a little. He hopes Alfred doesn’t notice.

“You’ve had a difficult year, but there are brighter skies ahead. You, uh,” Alfred pauses, shakes his head, and looks again, “you’re in love with someone.”

“I am.” Edward replies.

The light has definitely turned orange now. Alfred’s head is reeling, because Edward had never mentioned being in love with someone, had never talked about someone else, but evidently he had found someone and hadn’t bothered to mention it to Alfred.

He drops Edward’s hand. “You never said anything.”

“It never felt like the right time.” Edward’s voice is quiet, as though he’s talking to an easily startled wild animal. 

“Do I know him?” Alfred tries to run through every single guy he’s seen Edward with over the past few months. Someone from work, maybe? Evidently Edward’s romantic interest in this person has been going on for quite some time, judging by his palm.

Edward bites back a smile. “Yeah, you know him pretty well.” 

Oh god, what if it’s Jamie? Alfred couldn’t bear it if Edward was in love with Jamie, that might just shatter his heart altogether. Now that he thinks about it, it makes sense. Perhaps Alfred had been reading all of Edward’s signals wrong over these past few weeks, and perhaps he had only ever been interested in Jamie, and not him. 

He stands up and backs away a little, suddenly not feeling comfortable being so close to Edward. What if these past few weeks had meant nothing at all to Edward? God, Alfred can’t stand to even think about it.

“Wow, uh, that’s pretty unexpected.”  
  
“Alfred, you’re not reacting to this the way I thought you would.”

“The way you- Edward, you just told me you’re in love with someone you haven’t even mentioned to me, how am I supposed to mmpf-“

Edward is across the room in seconds, muffling Alfred’s words with a kiss. And Alfred’s entire world freezes on its axis.

Alfred doesn’t even know how to react, because _Edward Drummond is kissing him_. There are sirens blaring in his head, and it feels as though every single neurone in his brain is firing at once because _holy fuck_.

Before Alfred can react, Edward is pulling back, holding him by the shoulders and pressing their foreheads together. “It’s you.”

Alfred’s brain short-circuits, and all he can think is how much he wants to kiss Edward again, and how close he is, and how it would be so easy to just lean in… and so he does. He kisses Edward properly this time, and it’s some strange mixture of desperate and relieved and terrified all at the same time, and it’s everything he’s been wanting and waiting for, and he can’t believe he’s been so _stupid_ by not doing this sooner. He has his hands around Edward’s waist, and Edward tastes a little bit like coffee still, and it’s perfect and wonderful and-

Alfred pulls back way too soon, his brain still frantically trying to process what the hell is going on. “Wait, what the fuck?”

“So eloquent,” Edward teases.

“Oh, god, now that’s always going to be the first thing I said after you kissed me.” Alfred sighs, before looking back up at Edward. “You kissed me.” 

Edward’s face splits into a grin. “I did.”

“You love me.”

“I do.”

“Fuck,” Alfred whispers, leaning in just slightly, close enough that his and Edward’s noses brush. “I love you too.”

“You do?” Edward is chewing on his lip and it’s far too distracting for Alfred to make any kind of coherent reply, so instead he leans in to kiss Edward again, and then again, and then again.

“I do.” He whispers between kisses.

The mood, unfortunately, is promptly ruined by Mina bursting through the door. “Hey, Al, I have a customer for- oh!” She claps a hand over her mouth as Alfred and Edward jump apart. She glances frantically between them for a few seconds, before turning to look back down the corridor. “Florence! Get in here!” She then turns to the customer, who is hovering awkwardly behind her in the doorway. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realise he was busy, I can offer you an alternative slot tomorrow? Free of charge.” 

“Mina, you can’t just offer free palm readings, I can see him now-“

“Oh no you don’t! I know for a fact that the two of you haven’t talked through any of your crap and if you don’t do it now you never will.” Mina snaps, shutting Alfred up rather effectively.

“What happened? What did I miss?” Florence arrives, breathing a little heavily, like she’s sprinted from the front of the shop.

“They finally kissed!” 

“What? And I missed it?”

“I asked if you wanted to come with me and you said no.”

“Well they’ll just have to do it again, won’t they?”

“Okay, stop.” Edward cuts in.

“I, uh, I think I’m gonna go,” the customer chimes in.

“Come back tomorrow, we’ll do you a free one, but we’ve got to work through some shit.” Mina doesn’t look away as she replies. The customer looks more than a little bewildered, before he turns and hurries down the hall. Alfred isn’t sure he’ll be back.

“Mina, Edward’s right, we need to give them some space.”

The two of them exchange a somewhat terrifying look.

Alfred looks between Mina and Florence. “I’m not going to like this, am I?”

“Nope.” Florence grins, before backing out of the door with Mina and locking it behind them before he can blink.

Alfred purses his lips, before turning back to Edward with a sheepish expression. “I suppose they’re right. We do have a lot to talk about.”

“I can think of other things I’d prefer to do while we’re locked in here.” Edward grins, closing the distance between him and Alfred again, wrapping his hands loosely around his waist and kissing him softly and sweetly, just because he _can_ , and Alfred melts into his touch for a few moments.

“We need to talk, Edward,” Alfred mutters against his lips, not yet willing to open his eyes. 

“About what?”

“About the fact that I’ve treated you like crap, and the fact that I don’t deserve this after everything I put you through-“

“Firstly, even if you don’t think you deserve it, I absolutely do, okay? I’ve waited so long for this, and it’s about damn time quite frankly. And secondly, Alfred, you absolutely deserve this too. Why on earth wouldn’t you?” Edward reaches up a hand to stroke Alfred’s cheek so gently that Alfred leans into the touch just slightly.

“Because, Edward, you deserve someone who doesn’t run away at the first sign of trouble, and someone who doesn’t just ghost on you because he can’t handle his feelings, and someone who is… perfect, like you.” Alfred takes a step back, stumbling slightly as he does, but Edward quickly closes the distance between them again, and takes Alfred’s hand, leading him to the couch and sitting them both down.

“I don’t know where you got the idea that you’re somehow less than me from, but I need you to get rid of it now, okay? Alfred you are wonderful, and gorgeous, and sexy, and smart, and I love you so much. I don’t want anyone else, I want you.” Edward keeps a firm hold on Alfred’s hand, running his thumb back and forth over his knuckles.

“You do?” 

“Yes, you big idiot.” Edward leans in, bending down slightly  to nuzzle into Alfred’s shoulder. 

“I’m sorry. For everything I put you through.”

“It’s already forgiven.”

“No, I need to say this. I’m sorry that I pushed you away for so long. I thought it was for the best, because I was convinced you weren’t interested, but I see now that I did more harm than good. And I’m sorry that it took me so long, but I love you so much, Edward.” 

God, Edward looks so gorgeous in the pink neon light, that Alfred can’t help but kiss him again, and again, and again, trailing soft kisses down his neck and relishing in the contented sighs he earns from Edward. 

“Are we done talking yet?” Edward sounds slightly breathless, his voice croaking just a little as he looks down at Alfred with dilated pupils. “Because I think it’s about time we put this sofa to good use, since we’re locked in and all.”

Alfred wrinkles his nose. “Edward, I love you, but we are _not_ having sex for the first time on this sofa. We’re doing it in a bed,” he presses a chaste kiss on Edward’s lips, “and I’m going to kiss every single inch of you,” another kiss, “and I’m going to ravish you,” and another, “and it’s going to be magical.” 

“Not that that doesn’t sound lovely, but I’d quite like to get out of here quickly if that’s the plan. It’s just that I’ve wanted this for a year and a half.”

“A year and a half?” Alfred freezes. 

“Yeah, pretty much since we met.” Edward shrugs dismissively.

“Oh,” Alfred whispers, his mouth forming an ‘o’ in shock. He shakes his head, trying to erase the thought forming there. “I, uh, I’m going to get Mina to come and let us out now.” Alfred presses one last kiss onto Edward’s cheek, and then pulls out his phone to send her a furious text, not helped by Edward pressing feather-light kisses onto his neck in a way that is more than a little bit distracting.

She comes and lets them out a minute later, but neither of them stop to greet her, making an immediate beeline for the apartment, and, more importantly, the bedroom.

Things just seem to fall into place, in ways they hadn’t quite done with Jamie, and suddenly there’s so much skin on show, and Alfred feels himself slip into the moment like he’s sitting in a bubble where nothing outside of him and Edward matters anymore. It’s just the two of them, smiling and kissing, and the feeling of perfect euphoria.

Alfred wakes up in the morning with Edward still in his bed, the sheets just barely tucked around them both. God, he looks so beautiful in the morning sun.

He’s already awake, sitting up in bed doing a crossword puzzle, and there’s something about the way the morning sun hits his skin that makes Alfred’s heart skip a beat. He looks ethereal, like he can’t possibly be human, like he can’t possibly be here for real, like he could vanish in a puff of smoke at any second.

“Morning, sleepy head.” Edward leans over and presses a kiss onto Alfred’s forehead.

“G’morning,” Alfred mumbles, still trying to work out if yesterday was all just some crazy dream, and if he’s still dreaming now.

“So I know you’re working today, but I was wondering if you’re free this evening?” Edward folds his paper and places it on the bedside table. “I want to take you on a proper date.”

Alfred blushes. “I’m free tonight. I don’t usually put out before a first date though.” 

“Well, I think we can make an exception in our case, can’t we?”

Alfred hums contentedly as Edward leans in for a soft kiss, and maybe they both have morning breath, but maybe Alfred doesn’t mind, because this whole thing still feels like some peculiar fantasy he must have made up in his head. 

“Hey, so yesterday, when I said I’d wanted this since I met you… I guess I wondered how long it had been for you.” Edward looks a little sheepish, like he feels almost uncomfortable asking, but Alfred isn’t surprised. He supposes he’d want to know too.

“Pretty much since the moment you walked through my door.”

“Oh.” 

“Yeah.” 

“You mean we could have been doing this the entire time?”

“Yep.”

“Well no wonder everyone got sick of us!”

The two of them dissolve into giggles, laughing like they’re little kids, and something warm settles in Alfred’s stomach. This feels like _home_ , right here with Edward. This feels like the place he would want to run to when he got scared, and it feels like the place where he could feel safe.

“I suppose we’ll have to make up for lost time, then.” Alfred grins and rolls on top of Edward straddling him as their lips slide against each other.

“God, you’re such a dumbass, Alfred,” Edward whispers against Alfred’s lips, before snaking his hands around Alfred’s neck, pulling him closer to kiss him even harder.

“Oh please, like you were any better,” Alfred manages to say between kisses.

He’s about to reach down to pull off Edward’s boxers when the buzzer for their apartment rings. Once. Twice. And then a third time.

“Leave it,” Alfred mutters against Edward’s lips, but before they can get any further, a key is sliding into the lock on their door, and a rather angry Mina is storming into their apartment. 

“Alfred, I swear to god, I’m happy for you, but you still have a job, now get your ass out here right now before I come in there.”

Alfred groans and rolls his eyes, before rolling off of Edward and shooting him and apologetic look. He takes his time collecting his clothes, making sure to give Edward a show as he does so, and then he’s coming back to the bed and giving Edward one last, quick kiss.

“I’ll see you tonight?”

Edward fires him a wolfish grin. “Keep your phone on, maybe you’ll see me sooner.”

Alfred flushes and tries to resist the urge to jump back into bed with him immediately. In fact, the only reason he doesn’t is because Mina yells his name again, reminding him of the fact that he was supposed to be at the shop half an hour ago.

“I’ll see you tonight, Al, now go before I end up on Mina’s shit list. I’d quite like it if my boyfriend’s best friend liked me.”

Alfred freezes again. “Boyfriend?”

“Yeah, is that okay?”

Alfred has to will himself not to cry. “It’s more than okay.” 

“Alfred Paget! I will come in there!” Mina yells from the other side of the door.   
  
“I’m coming!” He yells, kissing Edward again, and then once more for good measure. “I love you. I’ll see you later.” God, it feels so wonderful to finally be able to say it that Alfred can’t stop. 

“I love you, too,” Edward whispers, and then Alfred’s gone, disappearing out of the door and leaving Edward wondering if it was real. And then he gets up and spots the hickey on his neck in the mirror.

It was real. And it was perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew, that was quite the ride...
> 
> just a side note to say that flo and mina are totally [this couple]() when they proposed to each other, just in case you wanted a visual of that....
> 
> there is an epilogue coming, which im hoping to post tomorrow, but this is pretty much it for our boys. i'll save the big sappy note for the real end though.
> 
> thank you so so so much for reading, i'd love to hear what you think, now that they've finally gotten their shit together! i thrive on comments! <3 <3 <3


	12. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh god the epilogue is finally here... 
> 
> this is almost triple the length i meant it to be, because i got totally carried away. i was just going to do like a chill 1000 word epilogue that sums up what happened next but i read that epilogue and i hated it so i wrote an entirely new version, which is how this was born. i actually came up with half of this in the middle of the night - like i woke up and sat bolt upright and started jotting down my ideas. unfortunately that was the same night where i had to get up at 2.30am to catch my flight, but hey.
> 
> also i haven't proofread this because i said i was going to post it like three days ago and i didn't so now i just want to get it out there, so if you spot any mistakes or glaring errors please let me know and i'll fix them! 
> 
> god, i hope you guys like this. we're picking up a year after where we left off!
> 
> enjoy the epilogue!

Alfred bumps into Jamie right where he’s least expecting it, at a florist’s, where he’s picking up some of the flowers for Mina and Florence’s wedding, because apparently there are so many that they don’t all fit in the delivery van the florists usually use. And, of course, the universe thinks that’s the perfect place for him to bump into his ex-boyfriend who he totally screwed over and still has yet to apologise properly to. 

“Alfred,” Jamie calls out to him. Alfred had really been hoping they might just give each other awkward, tight-lipped smiles, or, better yet, just ignore each other.

“Oh, hey, how are you?” Alfred really hopes he sounds more enthusiastic than he thinks he does.

“I’m good, how are you? Did you and Edward work things out?” Jamie is smiling good-naturedly, but there’s something in his eyes that Alfred can’t quite read. Almost like he _needs_ to know. 

Alfred nods, his face splitting into a grin unintentionally. “Yeah, we did, eventually. It took us a little while, but we got there eventually. In fact, it’s just over a year now. Thanks to you, I guess.”

Jamie’s smile definitely seems a little more real now. “I’m happy for you, man.” He reaches over and gives Alfred’s shoulder a gentle squeeze.

“And you? Got any hot dates lined up?”

“I actually have a boyfriend. In fact, he’s the florist here.” Jamie nods in the direction of the counter, which is currently empty, the florist having ducked out to the back to get the flowers for the wedding together.

Alfred is only slightly taken aback. “Wow, Jamie, that’s great! He’s quite the catch.” Alfred waggles his eyebrows. With the elephant in the room out of the way, it’s surprisingly easy to slip into casual conversation.

“What brings you here, then?”

“Well, Flo and Mina are tying the knot today, and I’ve been put on flower duty. It’s basically the only part of the wedding prep they’ll let me do. They’re worried I’ll turn all the chairs into mice or something if I get too involved.” Alfred rolls his eyes a little, and Jamie laughs quietly.

He looks like he’s about to say something, but, before he can, the florist returns with an armful of boxes. “These are the garlands, for the aisle, I’ll just pop back and grab the other boxes in a second.” He hands the boxes to Alfred, and then seems to clock Jamie, who’s now hovering a little awkwardly. “Oh, hey, you came! I’ll be done in like 10 minutes and then we can get lunch?”

“No rush, Sam, I can wait.” Jamie presses a quick kiss onto his cheek, which makes Sam blush, mumbling something incoherent. “Did you want a hand with those, Alfred?”

Alfred looks up from where he’s desperately attempting to juggle the long boxes with a sheepish smile. “If you don’t mind?”

“You guys know each other?” 

Jamie nods as he takes a few of the boxes from Alfred. “He’s _the_ Alfred.”

“Oh, he’s _that_ guy?”

Alfred laughs nervously. “I’m sure you haven’t exactly heard great things.”

“I’m just messing with you, Jamie hasn’t told me anything, but now I’m curious.” Sam laughs at Alfred’s mildly panicked expression.

“I’ll tell you later,” Jamie says with a small smile. “Why don’t we get Alfred set? Mina strikes me as a bit of a bride-zilla, and I don’t want to make Alfred the latest subject of her wrath.”

Sam nods and hurries back out to the back to get the rest of the boxes, while Jamie, follows Alfred out to the car, sliding the boxes into the backseat.

“She’s gone full bride-zilla. She called me at 3am last night screaming about napkins.”

Jamie raises his eyebrows. He almost looks impressed. “Well, I’m sure this is going to be the wedding of the century, then.”

The two of them stand up and lean back against the car for a moment, lapsing into silence.

“Hey, so, look, did you want to come? You know, to the wedding?” Alfred asks. “I mean, I know Mina was thinking about inviting you anyway, but she decided against it because, well, you know, we have history, but, like, I’d be cool with it. In fact, it would be nice to have someone else there who can recite Dorian Gray by heart.”

“You mean Edward can’t?” 

“I convinced him to read it, but he’s not quite at the quoting level yet.”

“Oh man, Alfred, why are you dating this guy?” Jamie grins, knocking his shoulder against Alfred’s. It feels like they’re veering towards dangerous territory, and Alfred isn’t sure either of them are quite ready to joke about that yet.

“I don’t know, I guess it’s just the universe fucking with me.”

“All jokes aside, though, are you sure it wouldn’t be weird?” Jamie almost sounds a little insecure for a second. It’s weird, Alfred never had him pegged as the insecure type.

“I mean, not for me, and you could bring Sam – he’s probably invited anyway – and I know the coven still loves you.” Alfred omits the small detail about them hating Jamie for a while until he finally came clean about the real reason they broke up. “But I totally get it if you’re not in that place yet, there’s no pressure to accept or anything.”

Jamie hesitates for a moment, and, yet again, before he can answer, Sam is appearing through the doors with another armful of boxes to put in Alfred’s car. They pack the boxes in carefully, and Sam says someone else has already dropped the rest of them off at the venue, which is actually just a clearing in the forest behind Victoria’s house. 

Alfred catches Jamie’s arm just before he leaves. “Look, if you feel like coming, the wedding is at Victoria’s house, the ceremony starts at 4. The whole thing is pretty casual, so no pressure. Let me know, okay?”

Jamie smiles at him. “I’ll be there.”

Alfred’s face breaks out in a grin. “Brilliant! Don’t forget to bring your boyfriend, ‘kay?”

“I will. Now get those flowers back to Mina before she… what was it she said? ‘hexes you into the next dimension’, right?”

“Right.” Alfred laughs, before climbing into his car, waving goodbye as he goes.

 

* * *

 

The ceremony is beautiful, although most of that can be attributed to the sheer volume of flowers they’ve somehow managed to fit in a relatively small space.

Mina and Florence are wearing relatively simple dresses, Mina’s a white shift dress with straps neatly crossed between her shoulder blades, and Florence’s an empire-waisted lace gown, with George perched on Florence’s shoulder, and Harlie wrapped around Mina’s wrist; it's a coven tradition. They’re a beautiful couple.

They reduce all of the attendees– mostly members of their coven, though Alfred does spot Jamie and Sam at the back – to tears with their vows, including Victoria, who's officiating, and who has to wipe her eyes to make sure she can see as she winds a red ribbon around their joined hands. When the ribbon is unwound, and they are announced as a married couple, everyone rushes forward to hug them.

In true Victoria fashion, Victoria offers to tattoo them with the rune for lasting partnership on their ring fingers, as is traditional in their coven. The two of them accept a little nervously, slightly reluctant to subject themselves to Victoria’s tattooing skills, or lack thereof, again. Still, they’re happily sporting their wedding rings on their hands to care for their fresh tattoos by the end of the evening.

Alfred finds Edward after the ceremony, as everyone makes their way back to Victoria’s house for the reception.

“Hey, I spotted Jamie back there, you okay?” Edward is the picture of concern, grabbing his hand.

“I invited him.” Alfred smiles. “I bumped into him at the florist, and I figured why not. I mean, things aren’t weird for me, and he’s got a boyfriend now, and I just thought it might be nice, you know?” 

Edward smiles down at him. “You’re crazy, Alfred, you know that? Not many people have the guts to just invite their ex to their best friend’s wedding.” 

Alfred shrugs with a small smile, and relishes in the feeling of Edward pressing a kiss onto the top of his head as they walk. “Do you want to do something like this?”

“What, get married?” Edward looks down at Alfred with a fond smile.

“Yeah, someday.”

“Well, what does my palm say?” Edward teases, disentangling his hand from Alfred’s to hold it out.

Alfred stops walking, grabbing Edward’s hand and holding it a little closer to have a look. “Well, it says you’re a dumbass and you should just answer my question.” 

Edward hums, taking Alfred’s hand back in his and starting to walk again, tugging Alfred behind him. 

They walk in silence for a moment, until Edward speaks up again. “In answer to your question, though,” he looks down at Alfred, his expression suddenly serious. “I would love to. I can’t imagine spending my life with anyone else.”

Alfred’s face splits into a grin. “Okay,” he breathes. “Okay, great. But I get to propose.”  
  
Edward shakes his head. “No way.”

“I called dibs! You can’t go back on that!”

“Okay, then I take it back.” Edward grins devilishly. “Marriage is off the table.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Oh, but I would.” Edward pauses, takes a breath, and squeezes Alfred’s hand. “Besides, I already bought a ring.”

Alfred stops in his tracks. “You did?” 

“I did.” Edward smiles. “I was going to propose later this evening, but since you asked...” Before Alfred can even blink, Edward is down on one knee with an open ring box in his hand, right there, on the path, in the middle of the forest, with their friends walking ahead of them to Florence and Mina’s wedding reception

Alfred wonders is there’s a verbal equivalent of a keysmash, because it’s the only think he can think of to articulate his feelings right now.

“So, what do you say, Al? Want to give it a go?”

Alfred pauses in mock hesitation. “Fuck, you know I really wanted to propose first. I had a whole plan and everything.” 

“Just say yes, you big idiot.” 

Alfred gets down on his knees so he’s level with Edward, placing his hands on his cheeks. They’re shaking, and, God, he can feel himself getting choked up. “Only if you ask the question. Properly, this time.”

Edward rolls his eyes a little, but he humours Alfred with a small smile. “Alfred Paget, will you marry me?”

“Edward Drummond, I will marry you.” Alfred replies, and he’s already crying as Edward slips the ring onto his finger, and then they’re kissing and it tastes like salt and _holy shit_ he doesn’t think he’s ever been happier.

 

* * *

 

They make it to the wedding reception eventually, and Alfred breaks the news to Mina that he’s engaged. To say she takes it well would be an understatement. He thinks the whole of London might have heard her scream ‘ _holy fucking shit on a stick finally’_ at the top of her lungs. She doesn’t even seem mad that it happened on the same day as her wedding.

Florence hugs Alfred, before holding him at arms-length for a second. “He’s had that ring for weeks, you know.”

Alfred looks over at Edward, who’s stood by his side, with a grin. “Oh has he now?” 

“I thought he might never do it,” Mina chimes in, passing Florence a glass of champagne and looping her arm around her now-wife’s waist.

“I was just waiting for the right moment.” 

Alfred presses a kiss onto Edward’s cheek, even though he has to stretch up to reach. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Ugh, were we ever that sappy?” Florence turns to Mina with a feigned grimace.

“Absolutely.” Mina grins as she pulls her in for a kiss.

Alfred and Edward share a quick look and sneak off quietly to leave the newlyweds to it. 

With very little family to invite to the wedding, with the exception of Mina’s aunt, who retired to her room relatively quickly after the ceremony, the wedding guests were almost exclusively members of their coven, and a few of the vendors for the wedding (Mina had insisted on inviting them), so the news of the engagement spreads quickly. To say Victoria is excited by the prospect of officiating another ceremony would be the understatement of the century.

Edward spots Jamie at the edge of the dancefloor, watching the man who is, presumably, his boyfriend, dancing with Florence.

“Quite the wedding, huh?” Edward approaches Jamie, drink in hand. Alfred said he wanted to be friends with Jamie again, and, dammit, Edward is going to try and make that happen. Besides, he’s useless when confronted with Alfred’s puppy dog eyes.

“It’s wonderful,” Jamie takes a sip of his drink before turning to Edward with a smile. “I heard the news about the engagement. Congratulations, man. I’m happy for you guys.” 

Edward smiles, his eyes landing on Alfred, who’s leading Mina in an elegant waltz across the dancefloor that puts all the other couples to shame. He’ll have to get Alfred to teach him how to dance like that sometime. “You know, I never did thank you for what you did.”

“You don’t have to.” Jamie brushes him off, but he takes another pointed sip of his drink. “Besides, it’s not like it was entire selfless. I mean, nobody wants to be in a relationship with someone who’s clearly into someone else, right?”

Edward nods, pursing his lips a little. “Still, you didn’t have to, but you did.” Jamie nods, but doesn’t reply. Clearly it’s still a bit of a touch subject. “That’s your boyfriend, over with Florence, right?”

It’s like Jamie’s face lights up. “Sam? Yeah, he’s great. I think I might end up marrying that guy someday.”

“You should go for it, man. Seize the day, you know?”

Jamie is about to reply, but, before he can, the song ends and Alfred is in front of Edward, grabbing his hand and dragging him to the dancefloor. Edward casts a look back in Jamie’s direction, shrugging apologetically, which earns a laugh from him.

“What was that all about?” Alfred asks with a smile as he leads Edward in a “not too complicated” dance that still has Edward staring at the floor to make sure he doesn’t step on Alfred’s toes.

Edward shrugs. “You said you wanted to be friends with him. He’s a nice guy, I guess I never really got to know him while you were dating because I was too busy loathing him from afar.”

“D’you know, before you first told me you loved me, I thought you might have been in love with Jamie. I thought that was the guy on your palm.”

Edward almost chokes, looking up at Alfred, and stepping on his foot as a result. “I’m sorry, what?” 

“I don’t know, I mean you were being super cryptic about it.”

“Al, I hated his guts the entire time you were dating.” 

Alfred shrugs noncommittally in response, his cheeks flushed a bright scarlet that he can’t quite blame on the dancing.

“Well, Alfred, in case it wasn’t perfectly clear, I’m in love with _you_.” Edward strokes his thumb over the ring on Alfred’s finger where their hands are joined, leaning into Alfred so there’s almost no space between them and kissing him sweetly, and softly.

Alfred grins into the kiss, wondering if there’s a way he could make this moment last forever, with him and Edward kissing in the middle of the dancefloor, swaying slightly to a slow song he recognises but couldn’t name, with all of their friends dancing alongside them. He’s never been happier, he thinks, than in this one, perfect moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh man i hope that didn't like.. ruin the rest of the fic for you. endings are difficult. like, how am i even supposed to end that? how am i supposed to end that? i don't even know, so i hope you liked it
> 
> shit, you guys, this is it. firstly, this is the longest multi-chapter fic i've ever written, and honestly i owe it all to you guys. without your comments and support i literally would not have finished this fic. shout outs to sheofthebookandsong for leaving the longest comments i think i've ever seen? to thebriars for consistently making me laugh!! to luckymoony who actually drew these characters and their familiars?? wow?? nobody has ever done that for me before.
> 
> thank you all for sticking with me through my crazy witch au idea - i genuinely didn't think anyone would read it, so the fact that you have literally warmed my heart? you guys are all awesome, i really hope you like the ending!
> 
> there will be more from this 'verse at some point - im planning a few little one-shots, either to follow on from here or to give some more detail about other bits of the story. if there's anything in particular you want to see from this 'verse then let me know in the comments and i'll add it to my list! 
> 
> i will also be returning to my sonnets fics, because i love a good bit of shakespeare, you know. 
> 
> anyway, thank you all again! i'll stop rambling now, though.
> 
> thank you!! <3 <3 <3

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading <3


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